This Celtic team needs rebuilt from the back.

There was a time, not so long ago, when watching Celtic felt like standing in the eye of a beautiful storm. Goals rained down, wave after wave, relentless and intoxicating. Yet behind it all there was steel. Control. Assurance.

Last season, Celtic didn’t just score for fun. We devoured teams. Over 100 league goals, a century of attacking brilliance that made the rest of the league look like spectators rather than competitors. What made it truly special, what made me believe we were building something formidable, was this: we also conceded the least.

That balance, that ruthless harmony between attack and defence, was our edge. That was Celtic at our most complete. And now?

I sit here watching it unravel, bit by bit, and I can’t shake the feeling that something fundamental has been lost.

Everyone wants to talk about the goals we’ve lost out of this team. Rightly so. You don’t replace that kind of firepower overnight. Goals win games, lift crowds, define seasons. But the conversation has become too narrow, because while we focus on one end of the pitch, the other has quietly started to crack.

We’ve not only lost goals. We’ve lost control.

This season, Celtic sit third in terms of defensive record. Third. We are one goal conceded better off than Hibs in fourth. Let that sink in. For a club built on dominance, on suffocating opponents, on imposing our will, third is not just a statistic. It’s a warning.

Seasons 2024/25 and 2025/26 feel like two completely different realities, with an abyss between them, filled with doubt and uncertainty. It’s unsettling to see where Celtic are now compared to where we were only a season ago.

So, what changed?

Last season, everything clicked. The goals flowed, but they came from structure, cohesion, and clarity. They came from having players who knew their roles and were having the time of their lives. We had better players in this side, that was part of it, and the two half of our team thrummed with energy and intent.

The other side of the game was just as formidable. We pressed high, recovered quickly, and when we lost the ball there was urgency, an aggressive refusal to let opponents breathe. Defensively, we were not just solid. We were disciplined, compact and intelligent. This season, the picture has shifted.

The goals have dropped. There is less fluidity, less inevitability. But more worrying than that is how easily teams now play through us. The Celtic side that once controlled games now looks open, vulnerable, uncertain.

And that uncertainty spreads.

When your defence weakens, it doesn’t just affect the goals you concede. It affects everything. Midfielders sit deeper. Full-backs hesitate. Attackers try to compensate. The whole system stutters.

So, what is wrong with the defence, and what does Celtic need to do to rebuild it? I keep coming back to this question: have we started to undervalue defending? The thing that can’t be denied is that our defence is weaker than it was.

This is what happens when you lose a player like Alastair Johnston and another like Carter Vickers to long spells on the sidelines; the absence of the big American has been especially hard to handle. A side which realised his value would have gone out and signed a replacement … what arrogant clowns we have running this board that they chose not to.

Celtic has always been about attacking football. About bravery, expression, forward momentum. That is part of our identity, and it should be. But we had a defensive solidity as well, which gave our forward players more freedom to roam knowing that the back door was locked tight and that no-one could hurt us.

Last season proved we could be both.

This season is showing what happens when we are not.

Rebuilding the attack is obvious. You can see it. You can measure it in goals, chances and moments. We knew we’d spend the summer on that project. But rebuilding the defence looks just as important.

Right now, there is hesitation. There are gaps. There are moments where one mistake becomes two, then three, and suddenly we are conceding. This is where it becomes uncomfortable. We don’t treat attack and defence as equal priorities.

We say we do. Every club says it. But actions tell a different story. When attacking options are lost, there is urgency. There is demand for replacements, for signings, for solutions. When defensive problems appear, they are treated as temporary. Something that will sort itself out. That mindset affects managers and coaches as well as fans. It should have been a critical task to bring in a top centre back in January.

Rebuilding the defence is just as important, if not more so, than strengthening the attack. A strong defensive foundation gives everything else permission to flourish. Without it, you are building on sand.

And that is what it feels like right now. As though we are trying to outscore problems rather than solve them. The numbers reflect it. A drop in goals scored impacts results. An increase in goals conceded does something worse. It turns wins into draws and draws into losses. It chips away at confidence, momentum and belief.

Goal difference is not just a statistic. It reflects control. Last season, it told a story of dominance. This season, that story feels less certain, less convincing. And points follow patterns.

It feels like Celtic need a broader rebuild. Not a panic reaction, but a modern, considered reset. We need defensive leadership. Players who organise, who take responsibility, who bring calm. We need better midfield protection. Too often the defence is exposed because the midfield isn’t shielding it effectively.

We also, badly, need tactical flexibility. One approach is not enough if it isn’t working consistently. We need squad depth. Injuries and fatigue are inevitable. The level cannot drop so sharply when they happen.

I’m torn. Part of me still believes in this team. I’ve seen what it can be. That version of Celtic hasn’t vanished. But another part of me feels we have drifted. That we have lost sight of key fundamentals. That the whole thing needs rebuilt. So, I come back to the question again.

Is rebuilding the defence just as important as strengthening the attack? For me, the answer is clear. Yes. Because I don’t just want Celtic to be exciting. I want Celtic to be complete and to dominate again, not in flashes, but across entire seasons.

I want us to suffocate teams again. That brutal, beautiful balance where we score freely and give nothing away.

Maybe this is part of the cycle. A dip, a reset, a reminder that nothing stands still. But this moment matters. How Celtic respond now will shape what comes next.

Do we double down on attack and hope it covers the cracks? Or do we step back and rebuild properly, from the back to the front? I know where I stand.

Fix the foundation. Restore the edge and bring back that certainty, that feeling that Celtic are stronger than whoever stands in front of us.

Right now, that feeling has faded. But it can come back if we get this right.