Charlie Nicholas explains how Brendan Rodgers should alter Celtic’s tactics

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Celtic have endured their worst start to a Scottish Premiership season for 20 years, with Brendan Rodgers under big pressure at Parkhead right now.

With Celtic currently looking a shadow of the team that beat all before them in the last two seasons, the concern about Odsonne Edouard’s form has certainly been exacerbated.

The Scottish Premiership giants paid £9 million to sign Edouard on a permanent basis after he spent the 2017/18 campaign on loan at Parkhead from Paris Saint-Germain. But the 21-year-old has scored just four goals in 11 games since then and none in the last six.

Fortunately for Celtic, Leigh Griffiths has stepped up, replacing Edouard in the 76th minute before scoring the winner against Rosenborg in the Europa League opener on Thursday and then starting, and scoring, in Sunday’s defeat at Kilmarnock.

Rodgers seems unwilling to pair Griffiths and Edouard up front, but Celtic legend Charlie Nicholas feels that big improvements would be made should the manager deviate from his one-striker system.

“He’s playing one up front whereas I think he should play two, with Griffiths and Edouard. You don’t spend £9m on Edouard, who only started 10 league games last season. And the best finisher at the club is Griffiths by a distance,” Nicholas told Sky Sports.

“Celtic dominate possession in domestic football – 70-75 per cent some weeks – but have scored six Premiership goals this season with one striker up front. I think the evidence is there.

“Of course, there are weaknesses defensively but if you play with two up front you become unpredictable and Celtic under Brendan at the moment have been predictable.

“Celtic have to take care of their own situation and I think it’s solvable – play Griffiths and Eduoard up front and Celtic will start scoring goals again.”

While Edouard is a natural centre forward, Griffiths is certainly capable of playing in a more withdrawn role thanks to his intelligent vision, clever link-play and movement across the front line.

So it is not beyond the realms of possibility that they could form a working partnership in green and white.