JOE HART says the number of changes made by Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou in the weekend defeat to St Mirren wasn’t a defining factor in the outcome of the game, adding that there were no excuses for the level of performance the players produced in Paisley.
Postecoglou made six alterations to his starting XI after the midweek draw with Shakhtar Donetsk on Champions League duty, and Celtic looked a pale imitation of the team that drew that match in Warsaw, and who had hit 25 goals in their opening six Premiership matches.
But when asked if the number of changes made to the team had a bearing on the outcome of the match at the SMiSA Stadium, Hart said: “No, no. No excuses. I’m sure the manager would have said the same thing.
“Whichever 11 or 16 go onto the pitch, there is full belief that we can play the way we want to play. We just got beat in the game.
“Obviously they played a strong game. They were tough physically and we just couldn’t quite get the flow. That flow just didn’t happen in the game. It wasn’t through lack of effort.
“We made a few decisions that we don’t usually make and they took their chances, which teams haven’t been able to against us recently.”
Hart also batted away suggestions that the St Mirren players had greater desire than their opponents on Sunday, and said that the defeat – Celtic’s first loss in 38 league matches – wasn’t necessary to remind them they can be punished if they are not at the top of their game.
“We don’t need to be told that,” he said. “We know that.
“It’s not as if we thought we could just turn up for the St Mirren game and play half a***d and win the game.
“We never thought that. We never think that. You can see that from our attitude.
“But we just weren’t quite at the races with everything that we wanted to be. And St Mirren played a good game.”
