LEIGH Griffiths may be the most naturally gifted finisher Scotland have produced in many a year. But the Celtic striker does not rely solely on his innate talent for putting the ball in the back of the net. Hard work and constant practice underpins the success he enjoys in front of goal.
That much has been evident on the Scottish champions’ pre-season break in Austria and the Czech Republic in the past 10 days.
Arriving at the home of Aigen-Schlagl FC, where the Parkhead club were training last week, ahead of their annual annihilation by the Celtic coaching staff, the Scottish media caught the tail end of a morning session.
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Griffiths, along with his fellow forwards, stood and whipped free-kick after free-kick after free-kick over a mannequin wall from the edge of the penalty box in the stifling midday sun. The percentage which found their intended target was startling.
The 26-year-old showed the same devastating accuracy as he had in the Scotland game against England last month when he curled two late dead ball deliveries beyond Joe Hart from fully 30 yards out.
He may receive the adulation and cheers of adoring supporters in front of crowds of 50,000 at Hampden and 60,000 at Parkhead, but the ground work is laid far away from sell-out crowds in altogether less impressive surroundings.
The Celtic squad have built up their fitness levels and honed their skills ahead of their return to action in the 2017/18 campaign at an isolated base deep in rural Austria where there have been no external distractions.
It is obvious that nobody involved in the Glasgow club is sitting back after the extraordinary season they have just enjoyed. Qualifying for the Champions League once again and defending the Betfred Cup, Ladbrokes Premiership and William Hill Scottish Cup is their clear objective. There has been no let-up.
The less said about the ability of the press pack who have been monitoring Celtic’s progress on their travels the better. The clash between the hacks and the back room team has become a tradition during pre-season. A more one-sided encounter will not be witnessed in the coming 10 months.
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A 13-4 drubbing was duly administered. It was fair to say Chris Davies, John Kennedy, Brendan Rodgers and Stevie Woods had rather more ability and considerably more running than their lumbering opponents. An injection of fresh legs, a few Bosman transfers perhaps, could well be the answer going forward.
The delight that Scott Brown and his fellow Celtic players, looking on from the sidelines, took as the Fourth Estate suffered one helluva beating was barely contained.
Rodgers proved himself to be a pretty effective right winger. Not quite Patrick Roberts perhaps. But he was certainly far too good for the pasty-faced and wheezing individuals who tried, and repeatedly failed, to close him down.
Celtic’s second pre-season friendly was against their old adversaries Rapid Vienna in Amstetten on Saturday. The Austrians were decent and enjoyed by far the better of a one-sided first half in front of a full house in the tiny Ertl Glas Stadium. They deserved to take the lead just before half-time when Brazilian striker Joelinton converted a penalty he himself had won.
Celtic failed to create any chances in the opening 45 minutes despite fielding a strong starting line-up and were often sloppy at the back. A bad mistake by Dedryck Boyata gifted Rapid their goal. But pre-season is the time to make such errors.
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Rodgers, as he had in the meeting with Blau-Weiss Linz in Rohrbach three days earlier, changed his entire team in the second half. The visitors finished strongly. Jonny Hayes caused problems for the opposition with his pace wide on the left and won a spot kick with 17 minutes remaining. It was easy to see why Rodgers had been so keen to add the Republic of Ireland winger to his squad.
Moussa Dembele, playing for Celtic for the first time since limping off in the Scottish Cup semi-final in April, stepped forward to take the spot kick and drilled his effort into the inside netting confidently. His showing augured well for next term.
It also underlined just why Griffiths, who lost his place to the Frenchman last term, and all of his team mates, who take on Slavia Prague here in the Czech Republic this evening, continue to apply themselves so diligently despite all of the silverware they have accrued and accolades they have been showered with.
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