da prosport bet： Celtic are now unbeaten in 36 consecutive domestic matches after a victory at Dens Park on Sunday against Dundee.
da bwin： It was a hard fought victory and in the end the Bhoys had to grind it out. They did that well and are now just one win away from winning a sixth successive league title, something they can do at Tynecastle on Sunday 2nd April.
Rushing to a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Jozo Simunovic and Stuart Armstrong, Dundee found a away back into the match in the second half through a wonderful Faissal El Bakhtaoui striker that left Craig Gordon helpless.
Pushing on to get an equaliser, Dundee went close twice through Marcus Haber but it wasn’t to be the Dark Blues’ day with Brendan Rodgers’ side heading home to Glasgow with the spoils.
What did the 90 minutes about where Celtic are right now?
Here are the FIVE lessons we learned from Sunday’s match…
Simunovic is Celtic’s best defender
Jozo Simunovic returned to the starting XI in place of Erik Sviatchenko and has immediatley proven he is surely Brendan Rodgers’ number one choice in the heart of the Celtic defence. Whether he plays alongside Dedryck Boyata or Sviatchenko himseld is up for debate but what’s clear is that Simunovic should be given the responsibility of playing in every game until now and this summer’s qualifiers.
The Hoops need stability in that area of the pitch most of all in those European qualifiers and you get the impression Simunovic is going to be a massive figure at the back for them.
Dundee are tough to crack
Celtic have won every game against Dundee this term but they’ve all come by a single goal margin. Physical, dogged and ambitious with the ball, they’re a tough nut to crack and on another day this one could have easily finished as a draw.
Paul Hartley knows how to play against Celtic and that was shown again on Sunday. Matches are going to get tougher and tougher for the Hoops as managers figure out the most efficient strategies to employ vs. Rodgers’ side but Celtic need to cope with that mentally and skill wise or risk their unbeaten record slipping away from them.
Dembele is off the boil again
Let’s be fair to Moussa Dembele, with 12 goals in his last 8 games there’s not much room for complaint about his contribution to Celtic right now.
However, the more observant fan may tell you that he isn’t quite at his best right now, two weeks in a row that he’s seemed a little off the boil.
That’s barely a criticism though. His age means that this sort of inconsistency happens and he’s bound to have the odd few bad games now and again. Don’t forget that at the tail-end of 2016 he went on a 12 game streak without scoring from open play.
Supporters must be hoping that the international break gives Rodgers time to work further with the team, for players like Dembele to be recharged and for the Hoops to look as strong as ever as they seek the domestic treble of trophies.
Stuart Armstrong goes from strength to strength
Stuart Armstrong hit his 12th goal of the season against Dundee, just two goals behind the sidelined Leigh Griffiths. We wonder what odds you would’ve got pre-season if you’d said Armstrong could finish ahead of Leigh Griffiths in the scoring charts.
His header was wonderfully taken and just the latest sign that he is one of the Hoops most important players right now. If he can keep on improving at this rate, the sky is the limit for Armstrong at the club.
Is he future captain material?
Forrest is underrated by the support
James Forrest’s two assists against Dundee mean he has now directly contributed to 18 goals this season, consistent of 7 goals and 11 assists. Not only that but he became the first Celtic player to reach double figures in terms of assists, highlighting how important he is to Brendan Rodgers’ side.
He didn’t have the best of games against Rangers but full credit to him, he responded this week and without him a draw or a less would have been the outcome.