“Høgh probably had his worst game for Celtic. A lot of one-touch stuff,” Chris Sutton said of the £11million forward after the Rangers game. “I do think variation to his play is important. To not always come short.” That is the debate now facing Celtic, because Høgh has already shown he can finish, but he has also left room for questions about the rest of his centre-forward play.

Høgh's output and the criticism around it

Celtic's club-record signing has not been short on impact in flashes. Høgh blasted a hat-trick in only his second game for Celtic, in the 5-1 rout of Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. He has 3 league goals from 2 appearances in 2026, and his season rating stands at 7.6.

The other side of that record is just as clear. Høgh has failed to find the net in his five other appearances, and Sutton's issue is with what happens when he is not simply finishing moves off. He said Høgh must find a way of holding the ball in and getting Celtic up the pitch in games such as LASK away and Rangers, while also avoiding the habit of coming short too often.

That view is not universal, and the argument around Celtic's attack is not only about one striker's touch. Benjamin Nygren has a 7.84 league rating, 3 league goals and 3 league assists, which is a reminder that Celtic do have other attackers contributing around the central striker.

Martin O'Neill's shape question

The wider problem is structural. Sutton said Celtic cannot play 4-4-2 because the central midfielders would be exposed, and that leaves Camilo Duran as the player he sees with the X factor. He was explicit about that when he said it was “a fair point to say: How are you going to get the best out of Camilo Duran more than anybody else in the team? Because he looks to be the guy with the X factor.”

That sits alongside Martin O'Neill's own frustration after the 1-0 win over ST Johnstone at McDiarmid Park. O'Neill said forwards cannot wait for perfect service, adding: “You can’t just put the ball on a plate for people. They have to make room for themselves to try and score a goal.” He also complained that the final ball needs to improve.

Celtic are still winning, which keeps this discussion on the level of refinement rather than crisis. But Sutton's point is hard to dismiss: Høgh's finishing has already shown up, and the job now is to decide whether the team can give him the right support without flattening the rest of the attack.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →