The Hoops arguably have two contenders for the role following Moussa Dembele’s arrival.
Despite finishing the last term as Celtic’s top goalscorer, and showing in pre-season that he has not lost his touch, Leigh Griffiths may find that his position as the Hoops’ main striker could be under threat judging by Brendan Rodgers’ comments to the Evening Times regarding his performance in their latest friendly.
The 25-year-old scored a brace as Celtic beat Olimpija Ljubljana 2-1. What made Griffiths’ contribution all the more impressive was that he was deployed on the right wing while summer signing Moussa Dembele was used down the middle, something that was not lost on his manager.
“I was really pleased for Leigh Griffiths because I thought his two finishes were top class. He is a player that will score goals whatever position he plays,” he told the Evening Times.
“By bringing in more offensive threats, it will give him more freedom. His two strikes were top quality finishes and I thought he and Moussa combined well together.”
Although Rodgers was full of praise for Griffiths’ performance, his apparent confidence in his ability to make an impact from anywhere on the pitch may suggest that his preferred plan is to keep last season’s top scorer out on the wing and leave Dembele to lead the line.
While Griffiths’ performance in Slovenia would suggest that he would have no problem being deployed out of position, he has previously struggled in that role in the past so there is no guarantee that he will be able to enjoy a consistent spell this time around.
And if the former Hibernian man does struggle to rediscover last season’s form, but Dembele has little problem finding the back of the net, Rodgers arguably faces a dilemma of whether he switches them around, adopts a different system to accommodate them both or even, decides that Griffiths is not as valuable to the team as he was last term.
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