This article was written for Scottishfootball.info by Josh Duncan, an aspiring sports writer, who has his own Substack account. Please follow him there and on X.com.
Josh’s latest article is an analysis of Kasper Høgh, based on the £11m striker's time in Norway.
Celtic have completed the signing of Kasper Høgh from Bodø/Glimt, for a reported £11 million. The Dane earned that club record fee with 54 goals and 22 assists in 103 appearances for Bodø/Glimt.
Høgh is 25 years old and stands at around 6’1”, with a strong physical makeup. Everything on paper points to this being an excellent signing for Celtic, with Høgh even having a successful Champions League campaign last season.
Despite this, there has been a lot of debate around the quality of Kasper Høgh and whether he can be successful outside of Bodø/Glimt. Kjetil Knutsen’s system at the Norwegian club is famous for platforming players to success. This success has been difficult for players to replicate outside of the club.
Strikers have especially struggled to replicate form away from Bodø/Glimt after moving elsewhere in Europe. Victor Boniface being the only major success, although his career has now been derailed by injury.
So on paper you have a great striker and great signing but the historical evidence is cause for concern. That’s the debate around this signing, which won’t stop until he actually steps on the pitch for Celtic.
Historical evidence is useful but players should be analysed on their own merits, not by how their predecessors faired. That is what I will try to do today. By watching Kasper Høgh, to figure out his game and how it will apply at Celtic.
Important to note that my analysis here focuses on his play domestically in Norway. I am aware of his goals in the Champions League but when trying to understand Høgh’s ability to perform for Celtic, the best comparison is how he faired in the Eliteserien.
Let’s start with his goals, that’s obviously the most important part of being a striker. In just over 900 minutes this season, Høgh has already scored 7 goals, one of which was a penalty.
Above is a compilation of all of Høgh’s goals this season in Norway. When watching, you get a pretty clear idea of how he likes to move. The second that his team get into a crossing position he drifts out to the back post.
The Bodø/Glimt attacking style favours low cutbacks as much as possible, which means Høgh gets a lot of easy chances at the back post. Høgh stays as far away from defenders as possible during these situations, trying to get on the end of things without any disruption.
So Høgh can finish when getting on the end of a move, so what happens when he has to create the ending for himself?
Høgh is once again in his place at the back post in the clip above. This time the cross leaves him with work to do. He takes the ball in with a couple of good options.
He has the space to take a left foot shot before being closed down or using the momentum of the defender against him to get by. Instead he ends up completing an impromptu one-two before the pressure forces a weak attempt.
I think these issues partially come from his shooting technique. Høgh is definitely less comfortable when finishing after taking a touch. In this instance the ball falls to Høgh and after his touch, he is slightly off balance while trying to place the ball in the far corner. It’s another instance of his technique being unable to create the necessary power.
The other issue with Høgh’s game around the goal is his physicality. I mentioned his constant moves to the back post already. Those moves are as much about avoiding a physical battle as they are finding space.
In the clip above, Høgh is progressing into the box, trying to move to the back post as normal. The left back is able to physically engage Høgh and steers him completely away from danger. Despite Høgh’s size, this is a common occurrence whenever he fails to avoid a physical battle.
Below is another example…
