156 touches, 89% duels won: Celtic star absolutely ran the show vs Dundee – opinion

The Hoops dynamo caught the eye with a fantastic performance down the flank.

Celtic remain two points behind their closest rivals in the Scottish Premiership title race after an emphatic 7-1 win over Dundee on Wednesday night.

Brendan Rodgers‘ side were incredibly ruthless at Parkhead as they took a 5-0 lead inside 36 minutes and ended the match with seven goals from ten shots on target, as Trevor Carson endured a night to forget between the sticks.

Cameron Carter-Vickers, Adam Idah, Matt O’Riley, Daizen Maeda, Greg Taylor, Connor McGregor, and Daniel Kelly all got their names on the scoresheet on the night.

Matt O’Riley was one of the stars of the game as the Danish magician showcased his immense attacking quality. However, he was not the only supremely impressive performer as right-back Alistair Johnston ran the show from his full-back position.

Matt O’Riley’s statistics against Dundee

The former Fulham prospect was an influential figure in the middle of the park for the Hoops as his creative quality was on display at Parkhead.

O’Riley assisted the first with an excellent cross from a free-kick to the back post for Carter-Vickers to nod the ball past the goalkeeper from close range.

The Denmark international then scored a header of his own before registering a second assist with a pass to Maeda in the box, who turned brilliantly to fire the ball into the far corner.

As you can see in the table above, O’Riley was a constant presence in possession with the second-most touches of any players on the pitch.

He made a huge impact in the final third and remained composed enough on the ball to rarely give it away with his attempted passes throughout the game.

The statistics that show Alistair Johnston ran the show

Johnston starred for Celtic alongside O’Riley with a phenomenal display at right-back. The Canada international ran the show in possession with more touches (156) than any other player on the park.

With those touches, the right-footed dynamo created more chances (three) than O’Riley and created as many ‘big chances’ (one) as the impressive midfielder.

He completed more passes (118) than any other player on the pitch had touches, with a success rate of 94%, and this highlights how much of an outlet the talented gem provided the team down the right flank.

Johnston was always available for a pass and helped Celtic to control, dominate, and put the game to bed during the first half with a clinical display.

The 25-year-old whiz, who was almost faultless defensive with a duel success rate of 89% (8/9), also picked up an assist for his attacking efforts.

Just like against Motherwell on Sunday, Johnston was released down the right flank and provided a perfect cross for Idah to find the back of the net, although this time with his head rather than his left foot.

It was a fantastic all-round performance from the right-back, who also completed three of his four attempted dribbles, as he was effective and impressive with his work in and out of possession throughout the game, which is why he ran the show alongside O’Riley.