One of the surprises of the season, as Celtic were beaten at St Johnstone and their title party was delayed by the Premiership’s bottom table club.
It’s not what the doctor ordered, with another iffy display from the champions-elect, especially on the road and since the turn of the year.
Before the game, Rodgers made a change to his backline following Celtic’s comfortable win against Hearts last time out, and that’s dropping Maik Nawrocki to the bench.
Auston Trusty was the man to come into the XI, with the summer signing taking up his usual role alongside his fellow countryman, Cameron Carter-Vickers.
Now, it’s not the reason why Celtic lost and dropped surprising points, but why did Rodgers make such a call?
Why Maik Nawrocki was dropped for Auston Trusty as Celtic lose to St Johnstone
Nawrocki has performed well any time he has been given a chance – and they have been rare – especially the clean sheet against Hearts last week.
But the Celtic manager wanted more balance to the backline, and that ‘left-footed’ option, hence why Nawrocki was put back on the bench.
Trusty has returned from injury, so Rodgers didn’t waste any time in making that call, as he explained to BBC Sport.
“I prefer a left-footed centre-half, it felt natural to put [Auston Trusty] back in,” shared Rodgers.
“Every game is different, we played really well here earlier in the season. We want to be able to bring that performance again today.
“The level of our football was fast and dynamic, and we want to do that again. We know we have to be aggressive in our counter-pressing.”
Trusty’s stats for Celtic against St Johnstone
So, how did Trusty fare upon his return to the starting XI? That early goal from St Johnstone was poor, as none of the backline dealt with the vicious set-piece.
The issue is that the goalscorer – Daniels Balodis – had threatened to score in the same fashion just minutes before, and then got his reward.
Overall, WhoScored rated Trusty’s performance at just under seven compared to the 7.54 handed to Carter-Vickers.
