The Huddle Breakdown

By The Huddle BreakdownSports Soccer Football

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Typical duration
56 min
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The Huddle Breakdown episodes

September 24 Celtic 0-1 Rangers: The Worst Home Derby in a Decade (The Data Explained)
Celtic's 1-0 defeat to Rangers at Parkhead was, by the numbers, the worst home Old Firm performance of the Wyscout era: an xG difference of -1.91, just three shots to Rangers' 14, and a long-ball rate roughly triple Celtic's historical norm. James is joined again by Rhiann (DataBhoys) to rewatch and dissect the debacle, including the confusing team selection and shifting formations, Callum McGregor's 14 possession losses, and why "the players didn't try" is the wrong conclusion. They then zoom out to the bigger picture: the "Frankenstein" clash between Celtic's legacy possession game model and Martin O'Neill's more direct approach, season-to-date data on xG conceded, possession, build-up turnovers and clearances that suggest one of the weakest Celtic sides in recent memory, the club's lack of strategy at executive level, and what Celtic's preliminary financial results really say about the club's cash position.Want to support the channel? - https://huddlebreakdown.com Like this video and want more content like it? Subscribe to the channel below and hit the bell to get notified every time a new video goes live. Follow us on Twitter: @huddlebreakdown @Alan_Morrison67 @jucojames
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1 hr 1 min
September 18 Celtic Are Broken | Celtic 1-3 Ferencváros & Derby Preview
Celtic’s 3-1 home defeat to Ferencváros capped a miserable week, and on this episode of The Huddle Breakdown Extra Time, Martin Murphy is joined by James and Heath to work out how much of it can possibly be fixed before Sunday’s Glasgow Derby. The panel goes deep into the tactical wreckage: a press with no triggers and no cohesion in the front line, a rest defence so open that every turnover turns into a jailbreak, Callum McGregor dropping into a 3-2-5 build-up that strands Bauer and Sorensen as a makeshift two, and a game model James calls “Frankenstein” — half Ange, half Rodgers, functioning as neither. There’s a look at Ross Grant’s set-piece work and Celtic’s front-post obsession, a close read of how Derek McInnes set Rangers up at Ibrox and what he might try at Parkhead, genuine praise for James Forrest’s performance, and a blunt assessment of the squad depth problem that shows up around the 70th minute. Plus: why Rangers have a Frankenstein of their own after Dan Purdy’s exit, where Celtic can actually hurt them, and what a bad result on Sunday means with Rangers two points behind and a brutal six-week run of fixtures ahead.
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11 min
September 16 Rangers 3-0 Celtic: Why Celtic's Game Model Is BROKEN | Tactical Breakdown + Ferencváros Preview
Celtic were humbled 3-0 by Rangers at Ibrox, and The Huddle Breakdown goes beyond the hot takes to explain why. With Alan away in Tokyo, James is joined by data analyst Rhian (RhiCam on Substack, @databhoys on X) for a tactical and data-driven breakdown of the Old Firm derby. They cover Derek McInnes' man-marking plan, James Penrice's dual role, the Hassan and goalkeeper selection calls, Celtic's disjointed press, and Callum McGregor dropping between the centre-backs. The bigger question is whether Celtic's possession game model is now outdated, since opponents like Rangers, LASK and Club Brugge have worked out how to neutralise it. They also preview Thursday's Europa League match against Ferencváros, with PPDA pressing numbers, the inverted full-backs, key players to watch and how Martin O'Neill should line up to take three points.

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1 hr 13 min
September 11 Can Celtic's Defense Survive Ibrox? | First Derby of the Season Preview + St Johnstone Reaction
Martin, James, and returning guest Heath break down Celtic's 1-0 win away at St Johnstone — a game that delivered three points but raised plenty of questions, from a flat first half and an experimental 3-2-5 to Mika Bauer's match-winner and Sam Johnstone's debut in goal. James shares striking benchmarking data on Hassan, Celtic's brilliant but baffling winger — 99th percentile for dribbles and crosses, near-zero for defensive work — and asks whether the pieces up front actually fit together. Then it's the big one: a full Glasgow Derby preview ahead of the League Cup tie at Ibrox, with a data-driven look at Derek McInnes's Rangers, their shift toward direct football, Celtic's alarming open-play xG conceded, and the selection debate over Duran, Hogh, and Hassan. Plus League Cup history, lineup predictions, and a wee bit of poetry corner.

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11 min
September 08 Celtic & The League's Tactical Revolution | Scottish Football Has Gone BOX OFFICE
James is joined by special guest co-host Quinny (filling in for Alan, currently sampling sushi in Japan) to break down Celtic's 2-1 win away at St Mirren and what it tells us about this evolving Celtic side. They dig into Hassan's "gravitational pull" on the wing and whether his end product will catch up to his athleticism, Liam Scales' surprisingly dynamic left back role, and how the new-look midfield is adding verticality to Celtic's game model. Then they zoom out for a whip-around of the Scottish Premiership's tactical revolution — why half the league's managers are changing philosophy, why teams are getting punished for pressing, and why Scottish football is suddenly box office viewing — before previewing Wednesday's trip to St Johnstone. Data-driven Celtic FC analysis, every week on The Huddle Breakdown.

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1 hr 16 min
September 04 Celtic's New Signings RATED: Van den Berg Hype, Johnstone Doubts & a Top of Table Clash at St Mirren
With Alan away in the Far East, Martin and James welcome Celtic analytics community scout Heath Tempe to break down a huge week for Celtic FC. The panel reviews the win over Aberdeen — Yang's electric man-of-the-match display, Duran's ridiculous finishing form, and why Hassan's crossing is driving everyone mad — before diving into Celtic's transfer deadline signings: PSV wonderkid Yoel Van den Berg, Feyenoord loan fullback Jordan Latombe, Sorensen, teenage Chelsea striker Mukko, and ex-England goalkeeper Sam Johnstone. Plus a data-driven look at the Europa League squad and a full tactical preview of Saturday's top-of-the-table clash away to a rebuilt St Mirren. Celtic news, transfer analysis, and Scottish Premiership stats — every week on The Huddle Breakdown.

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11 min
September 01 Celtic's New Winger Just Broke a 12-Year Record — And It Might Not Matter
Celtic's win over Falkirk produced a completely standard-looking stat pack — plus-two in xG, a +300 packing score, more than double the box possessions, six saves to one — but James and Alan argue that almost nothing about the inputs behind that familiar output was normal. This week on The Huddle Breakdown: Hassan's first proper look at Celtic Park, where his ball-carrying projected to roughly 45 pack dribbles per 90 minutes, against a 12-year record season average of 15 — and yet ended with no shots, one chance created, 14 passes given away and 0.1 expected scoring contribution. The lads dig into whether Celtic's pressing identity has quietly evaporated since Brendan Rodgers left, why the Duran–Hassan–Hu selection puzzle may never cohere, what Callum McGregor's packing numbers against Falkirk reveal about his best remaining role, and why four summer signings have realistically solved only two starting problems. Plus a deadline-week trawl through the rumour mill — Nkunku, Sorensen, Van de Berg and the goalkeeper hunt — an argument about how intra-Premier League spending has detached the top of the market and left an €8m average fee everywhere else, and a preview of Stephen Robinson's big, direct, set-piece-hungry Aberdeen arriving at Celtic Park on Wednesday.

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1 hr 5 min
August 28 Celtic's LASK Collapse: Systemic Failure, Not Bad Luck | Extra Time
Celtic threw away a four-goal aggregate lead in Austria and crashed out of the Champions League to LASK — and on this week's Extra Time, Martin, Alan and James argue that luck had nothing to do with it. Alan makes the case that this is a pattern of boardroom incompetence stretching back years, with as much as £300 million in Champions League revenue left on the table, before breaking down the tactical collapse: a 4-4-2 that should have been a 4-5-1 mid-block, two pivots permanently ahead of the ball, goal kicks fired down the middle, substitutions that changed nothing, and a standard of conditioning he found astonishing. James explains why LASK's second-half press exposed a fragility Celtic have shown for 15 months, why the squad's depth compounded every other risk, and where Bauer fits into a fix. Plus: xG and packing data placing this among the worst Celtic performances of the last decade, the Manchester United–Hull comparison that explains the midfield, Hearts, Hibs, Motherwell and Rangers in Europe, the Europa League draw ranked by Elo and Opta power rankings, and a Falkirk preview.

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11 min
August 24 Celtic vs LASK Second Leg: How Celtic Kill the Tie in Linz | Champions League Play-Off Preview
Celtic take a 3-0 lead to Linz — but how do they actually kill this tie? On this week's Huddle Breakdown, Alan and James break down the Champions League play-off second leg against LASK at the Raiffeisen Arena. Using average position charts, duel data and pressing heights from the first leg, they explain how LASK flood the middle of the pitch, why their wing-backs were neutralised at Celtic Park, and how their three main weapons — the long early ball, crosses and set pieces — could still cause chaos in Austria. Alan makes the case for a compact mid-block and a 4-4-2, James argues over Liam Scales vs Cameron Carter-Vickers and the risk of playing a high line, and both revisit the Astana and Hapoel Be'er Sheva horror shows as cautionary tales. Plus: the state of Celtic's transfer window before September 3rd, where the squad is still dangerously thin, and why Celtic fans should be quietly rooting for Rangers, Hearts and Hibs on Thursday.
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53 min
August 21 Celtic 3-0 LASK: Three Worldies and One Big Warning | Huddle Breakdown Extra Time
Celtic beat LASK 3-0 at Celtic Park to take a commanding lead into the Champions League play-off second leg in Linz — but what does the data actually say? On this Huddle Breakdown Extra Time, Martin, Alan and James dig into a 3-0 win built on three world-class finishes from just 0.89 xG, a lost packing battle, and a midfield that was repeatedly wide open in transition. Alan explains why Callum McGregor was packed 31 times — a figure he's only matched against Bayern, Dortmund, Real Madrid and Milan — while James lays out the "jailbreak" problem behind the scoreline and asks whether Mika Baur and McGregor can play together. Plus: Camilo Duran's double and whether he's really a right winger, Benjamin Nygren's vindication after a season of abuse, Kasper Høgh's role debate, Viljami Sinisalo's first big save, Colby Donovan's breakout, and why Haissem Hassan's eight minutes were the most exciting of the night. The guys also look ahead to the return leg at the Raiffeisen Arena, the latest Celtic transfer links, and how Rangers, Hearts, Hibs and Motherwell fared in Europe.

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11 min

About The Huddle Breakdown

From the publisher's feed

The Huddle Breakdown is a podcast focusing on all things Celtic FC. This is not your regular fan-run podcast though, we combine analysis with statistics to provide a proper deep-dive into the…