Q&A: Lawrence Shankland on Celtic warning, reaction and goal drought

Lawrence Shankland scored the hosts' only goal - ending an eight-game streak without finding the net - but the centre-forward's efforts were in vain after a series of cheap goals saw Brendan Rodgers' men cruise to a comfortable win in the capital.

Here's everything the striker said to the media:

What are your thoughts on the game?

It’s disappointing overall, obviously, the result. The goals that Celtic scored, from our point of view, it didn’t feel like they had to work too hard to score them. That’s disappointing for us. We came into the game late on but the scoreline still suited Celtic heavily. It’s done now and we have to move on to a big week.

Do you think you made it easy for them at times?

At times it felt like that. Don’t get me wrong, some of their one-touch play was really good and they were on it, to be honest. And when they’ve got that quality, it can cause you problems. There’s no shame in that. But when we look at ourselves, we need to be defensively more solid.

It’s a disappointing result but good for yourself to get back on the scoresheet?

Aye, of course. It’s been a wee bit of a drought and I’m glad that it’s over now. So if there any positives to take personally, that can be one.

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Can you go on a streak now?

Aye, I’ve done it before. But up until the same date last year, I’d only scored five goals as well so I’m on track for what I did last year. So I can work with that going forward.

A lot of people might not have realised that.

Perspective is huge in football. Of course my game’s not been brilliant at times this season. I’d say myself that I can improve. But, listen, it’s not through a lack of effort. I’m working hard and trying my best out there. Sometimes it doesn’t quite work out and you have a wee dip in form. Hopefully that goal today can turn things and get me going in the right direction again.

Does that come with experience?

That’s how it comes. You go through a lot in your career and you learn. There are spells when the goals just don’t flow and there are others when they fly in. Most of the time it’s about just getting that one again and you try and build from there. That happened today so hopefully I can now kick on.

There haven’t been many chances over the past few weeks, has that frustrated you?

Of course. As a striker, I think when you are on one of those wee runs, you second-guess runs you make in the box and sometimes it just feels like you are always making the wrong run or taking the wrong option. That can happen. I managed to get one today and hopefully I now go on a wee run.

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How was it playing with Kenneth Vargas a bit more advanced than you?

It was a slightly different dynamic from what we’ve played normally. I dropped back one again. It’s just a role for the team that I have to play. I tried to help out overall in the system we wanted to play. The game probably worked out a bit different to what we thought. Overall, it was just our lack of quality and the way we defended as a team that cost us. Celtic punished us.

You’ll have to improve at Ibrox?

Definitely. When you play the Old Firm, you know they have got that quality. If you are not on the top of your game, they can are things really difficult for you. We need to take today as a wee warning really. We can use it in the right way ahead of going to Ibrox. We need to go in confident. We can’t think about today and think, ‘that’s going to happen again’. We can’t do that. We move on. It’s a completely different game, a different team. It will be a tough ask but we’ll be looking to go there and get a result.

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