Charlie Mulgrew has claimed that Kasper Hogh’s confidence has been completely shot by his poor run of form at Celtic since his hat-trick at Rugby Park back in August…
25th October 2026; Easter Road Scottish Premiership Football, Hibernian versus Celtic; Kasper Hogh of Celtic. Photo Vagelis Georgariou
Kasper Hogh is Celtic’s record signing at £11.5m so it’s absolutely crucial that Martin O’Neill and his coaching staff find a way to fit the Denmark international striker into the team that sees him showing his best attributes.
For now though nothing is going right for Hogh on the park and in Mulgrew’s view as a former player who has experience himself of losing confidence, the former Bodo Glimt striker should be taken out of the firing line for a month or so.
Kasper Hogh of Celtic looks dejected after the team’s defeat in the UEFA Europa League 2026/27 League Phase MD3 match between Celtic FC and Celta Vigo at Celtic Park on October 22, 2026. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Charlie Mulgrew’s worrying assessment on Kasper Hogh
Speaking on the Go Radio Football Show, Mulgrew gave his assessment of Hogh’s time at Celtic so far which aside from that hat-trick against Kilmarnock has produced nothing else. Looking back at Kasper Hogh’s performance for Celtic in the 2-1 win at Easter Road on Sunday against Hibs, Mulgrew reckoned that the striker was lucky to stay on beyond 35 minutes after missing two good chances.
“I would have hooked him off at 35 minutes. He missed two sitters, you could tell his confidence is gone and he ran into the referee to sum it up. He came short for a ball and nearly set Hibs on the counter attack,”Charlie Mulgrew noted.
“I’ve been there as a player so I can completely sympathise with him”
He continued: “He’s gone. His confidence is gone. I’ve been there as a player so I can completely sympathise with him.
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND – OCTOBER 18: Kasper Hogh and Jota of Celtic interact after the William Hill Premiership 2026/27 match between Celtic and Heart of Midlothian at Celtic Park on October 18, 2026 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
“It was once described to me – and it made so much sense – when your confidence is gone a ball coming towards you is like a golf ball fired out a gun, when you are feeling really confident it is almost like a balloon or beach ball coming really slowly and you can see everything so clearly.
“Confidence is a massive thing in football and Kasper Hogh at this moment in time, nothing has gone right for him,” Charlie Mulgrew stated.
9th September 2026; McDiarmid Park, Scottish Premiership St Johnstone versus Celtic; Kasper Hogh of Celtic tries to rouse the fans. Photo Vagelis Georgariou
“He wants the ground to swallow him up because he feels so low”
“I think he needs taken out the team for a month or so, and just brought on for 10-15 minutes here and there and eased back in to get his confidence back up because right now he is in the firing line.
“I looked at him yesterday and knew how he felt. He wants the ground to swallow him up because he feels so low. At this moment in time I am struggling to see what his outstanding attributes are.”
Charlie of course isn’t making these calls and after his own short and underwhelming time in management at Kelty Hearts earlier this year, that’s likely to remain the case.
25th October 2026; Easter Road, Scottish Premiership Football, Hibernian versus Celtic; Celtic manager Martin O’Neill and the Celtic bench react after Owen Elding of Hibernian shoots and scores to make it 1-0 in the 3rd minute. Photo Vagelis Georgariou
Martin O’Neill is the man picking the team at Celtic
Martin O’Neill is the man picking the team at Celtic and he reckons that Kasper Hogh will come good and will end up scoring 20 goals this season. So far he’s got three while Camilo Duran reached double figures when scoring the winner for Celtic at Easter Road.
The Colombian has frequently had to play wide on right of the Celtic attack to accommodate Hogh in the team, and he’s done so without complaining. Duran is on course to score 30 plus goals this season and at this stage that seems more likely than Kasper Hogh getting 20.
25th October 2026; Easter Road, Scottish Premiership, Hibernian versus Celtic; Camilo Duran of Celtic celebrates after he shoots and scores in the 43rd minute to make it 2-1 to Celtic, Photo Vagelis Georgariou
Kasper Hogh desperately needs that fourth goal for Celtic
That said the fourth goal from Kasper may well turn out to be his most important, with Martin O’Neill also noting that the Dane just needs the next goal to kickstart his time at Celtic and to raise his confidence levels.
It will be interesting to see who leads the line on Wednesday night against an in form Dundee United at Celtic Park. If it’s Kasper Hogh he needs to be given as much backing as possible from the Celtic support, which will of course benefit from the return of the Green Brigade after they stayed away from the 2-1 defeat to Celta Vigo in the Europa League last Thursday night.
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Celtic in the Fifties by Matt Corr, in two volumes, both published on 4th September 2026 by Celtic Star Books. Click on image to order.
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