Sunday's table-topping Scottish Premiership clash perfectly summed up Benjamin Nygren. In a game of utmost significance, the Swede came up with a moment of sheer distinction. Aside from his seventh-minute free-kick, however, Nygren mustered little in a Celtic midfield that struggled to cope with the intensity of Tynecastle Park.
The strike was Nygren's thirteenth of the season and eleventh in the league, making him the Premiership's joint-top scorer and his club's leading marksman.
Since Martin O'Neill returned to take charge of Celtic for the second time this season at the beginning of the month, the 24-year-old has found the back of the net, on average, every 84 minutes. Under Wilfried Nancy, however, albeit with a greater sample size, Nygren scored once every 146 minutes.
"It is difficult to point on one thing, but he's been here before," Nygren said of how O'Neill has sparked an upturn in Celtic's form. "He's loved and respected by everyone around the club, and he knows the club and what it takes to represent Celtic.
“I just think that he's brought the best out of the players and that's been shown in the results."
Read more:
Often Mr Reliable, while one cannot argue with what Nygren brings in front of goal, elsewhere, especially for a midfield player, his contributions leave much to be desired, at least to the bare eye.
What do the numbers say?
In the Premiership in 2025/26, Nygren has a noticeably low pass completion rate. Indeed, only 79 per cent of the passes he makes in the league reach a team-mate. That puts him in the 39th percentile for players across the division.
He does, however, stand out in chance creation. His xG assisted (expected goals assisted) sits at 0.17 per 90, leaving him in the 93rd percentile for the Premiership. Moreover, Nygren averages 1.51 open play key passes (a pass leading to a shot) per 90 in the league, and is the joint-second among midfielders who have played more than 900 minutes in the division this season for such a metric.
Introduced at half-time against Bologna last week after Celtic went down to 10 men, Nygren was asked to put in a defensive shift, which hasn't been one of his strengths. His team eventually held on for an admirable 2-2 draw, and they know a win against Utrecht at Parkhead on Thursday evening will see them into the Europa League knockout-stage play-offs.
"Especially playing with 10 men for so long, it was a well-fought point," Nygren said. "I am very proud of everyone. We fought as hard as we could and tried to cover as much space as we could and try to defend as good as possible.
"Unfortunately, we conceded two goals, but we got a draw. We go from here with a lot of confidence."
As fate would have it, Celtic got a man sent off for the second game running on Sunday, as Auston Trusty was given his marching orders against Hearts. Once more, O'Neill's men held on for a point.
"We have fought well as a team, and there is a positive spirit in the squad," Nygren continued. "We had three straight wins and now we’ve shown we can get good results against good sides with 10 men for long parts of the game. There’s a positive spirit in the team.
"Every game is important now and we know that we need to win almost every game. That's what we're going to try to do."
Nygren's innate goal threat
Incredibly, Nygren's Sunday wonder-strike was his first Celtic goal from outside the box. His positioning in and around the penalty area is elite. Being in the right place at the right time is a skill, and he appears to have mastered it.
Of his 13 goals in all competitions this term, seven have been with his left foot, four with his right, and two via his head. Considering where Celtic would be without Nygren is unthinkable.
When Sky Sports flashed a grim-looking graphic showing that Celtic hadn't scored a Premiership free-kick in 86 attempts as Nygren stepped up to the plate on Sunday, an air of inevitability came over Gorgie. You have to go back to 2021 to find their last free-kick goal in the league - it was scored by David Turnbull in a one-all draw with Hibernian.
Nygren's effort, which flew into the right-hand side of Craig Gordon's goal, had an individual xG (expected goals) value of just 0.05. Similarly, his superlative strike that curled into the top corner away to Livingston just after Christmas amounted to only 0.04 xG.
In total, he has scored 11 goals from 5.78xG in the league this season. While that suggests a significant overperformance, it adds credence to Nygren's clinical execution and admirable shot placement.
Does his goalscoring prowess justify continual enigmatic midfield displays? On the face of it, yes. Without Nygren's goals, Celtic would be much worse off than they currently are. Whether from the start or off the bench, he offers a constant threat.
In the run-in, Nygren's contributions will doubtless be crucial for Celtic. Still competing in three different competitions, they need their key players to step up.
Qualification for the Europa League knockout stage play-offs on Thursday evening could provide a considerable shot in the arm, and with Celtic having the most favourable of upcoming league fixtures out of their title rivals, they will be eager to gain some all-important momentum.
While Nygren and his colleagues know that the campaign so far has been substandard, they believe they are a top team with a laudable spirit, who could yet achieve something special.
"We know this season hasn't been as we've hoped for, but we've always tried to focus on what we can do," he said. "We've had very good togetherness within the team, and we've always stayed together as a group, no matter the result.
"I think we've shown a couple of times this season that we're a very strong group. We haven't had some of the results we would have wanted, but we've still kept on fighting, kept on chasing results. That's what we will keep on doing. We know that we are a great team."
Celtic kick off against Utrecht at 8pm on Thursday evening, before welcoming Falkirk to Parkhead in the Premiership on Sunday.
