Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has adjusted his management style to accommodate the talent of Giorgos Giakoumakis at Parkhead.
That is according to the Celtic correspondent for The Athletic, Kieran Devlin, who has hailed the Greek striker after his impressive hat-trick on Sunday.
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Celtic maintained their three-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership after a 4-0 victory against Ross County in which the 27-year-old netted three times.
The Greek striker scored two goals with his head in the first half and his third came from the penalty spot as he dominated the County defence inside their own box.
And Devlin highlighted how Postecoglou has reduced the 27-year-old’s involvement in the build-up play as he focuses on causing the defence issues in the box.
Devlin wrote for The Athletic: “Postecoglou has grown to realise that Giakoumakis’s talent can be used without asking him to perform tasks he is uncomfortable with.
“This is not a compromise of Postecoglou’s philosophy as the nine other outfield players are still abiding by it – it is just an adjustment to bring the best out of a player who is otherwise not a perfect fit. It is, simply, good management.”
TIF Thoughts on Devlin’s comments…
Within his article, Devlin noted the striker’s poor passing ability in certain games earlier in the season, and that was still on display during the game against Ross County with just 71% accuracy (via SofaScore).
However, Devlin’s point of Giakoumakis being allowed to cause problems inside the box was evident, with the striker scoring three goals despite touching the ball just 26 times across the entire game.
This shows Giakoumakis had very little involvement in any build-up play during the game but also highlights how devastating he can be in the box despite not having much of an effect on the general play.
In other news: Hugely exciting image emerges out of Celtic – opinion