Kasper Høgh, I still believe in you. And no, I haven’t suddenly lost my marbles, nor have I decided to sprinkle some fairy dust over Celtic Park and pretend that everything is wonderful in Paradise.

Believe me, fellow Celtic fans, I am perfectly capable of recognising when something is wrong with our beloved club.

However, when it comes to our Danish striker, I have a feeling that we might be looking at the problem from the wrong end of the pitch.

Because for me, this is becoming less about whether Kasper Høgh is good enough and more about whether Martin O’Neill knows what he wants to do with Høgh and Camilo Duran.

And sooner or later, he has to make a choice.

Either find a way to play them together in a two-man forward line, or decide which one is the first-choice striker and put the other on the bench. What Celtic cannot keep doing is hovering somewhere in between.

Celtic signed Kasper Høgh for a reported £11 million, and naturally, expectations were high. When a club spends that kind of money on a player, we expect quality, goals, movement, intelligence and, preferably, an immediate understanding with his teammates.

After all, £11 million is not the sort of money one finds underneath the sofa cushions while looking for the television remote.

But here is my first question: did Celtic genuinely expect Høgh to grasp everything immediately, or did someone forget that footballers need the right tactical environment to thrive? Because, fellow Celtic fans, signing an expensive striker is one thing. Knowing how to use him properly is quite another.

And right now, that is the issue Martin O’Neill has to solve.

After the 2-2 draw against Dundee United at Celtic Park, Høgh appeared frustrated. And honestly, I understand the man.

I was there, watching Celtic live, hoping to see a convincing performance and three precious points secured. Instead, we witnessed another evening in which Celtic made life considerably more complicated than it needed to be.

Camilo Duran gave us an excellent opening goal, yet Dundee United found a way back into the game, and Celtic had to work hard to rescue a draw.

Not exactly the sort of evening that makes you want to dance around Paradise with a bottle of champagne, is it?

But what interested me was the relationship between Høgh and Duran.

Høgh provided the assist for Duran’s goal, and that moment raised a question which I do not think Celtic can avoid much longer. Could these two actually play together as a two-man strike-force?

I do not believe we should automatically interpret a striker’s frustration as evidence that he is failing. Sometimes frustration comes from knowing that you can contribute more, but finding yourself in a system that does not allow you to demonstrate your abilities consistently.

A striker needs service. He needs intelligent movement around him, teammates who understand his runs, and a tactical structure that creates opportunities rather than leaving him to fight a lonely battle against opposing defenders.

And if Celtic paid £11 million for Høgh, I would expect the coaching staff to understand these basic principles.

I am an English teacher, not a football manager, but even I understand that if you want a particular result, you need to use the correct method. You cannot expect a student to produce an outstanding essay if you give them confusing instructions and then complain that the final result does not meet your expectations.

The same principle applies to football. You cannot spend £11 million on a striker, fail to make the most of his strengths, and then look surprised when he struggles to make the impact everyone anticipated.

Nor can you bring in another striker, play him instead, and simply hope the problem somehow solves itself.

That is why I keep coming back to the same choice.

Play them together, or choose between them.

Kasper Høgh and Camilo Duran have already demonstrated that they can combine effectively. Høgh provided the assist for Duran’s goal against Dundee United, and that moment offered us something worth examining beyond the immediate disappointment of dropping two points.

There is a connection between these two players, and I want Celtic to explore it properly.

Perhaps Duran could play ahead of Høgh, allowing Høgh to operate slightly deeper. Perhaps Høgh could occupy defenders while Duran attacks the spaces around him. Perhaps they could interchange, with one dropping towards the ball and the other running beyond.

Think about it.

Høgh creates an opportunity, Duran finishes it. Duran draws defenders towards him, Høgh finds the space. One player makes the run, the other supplies the pass. With the right understanding, they could exchange those responsibilities depending on the situation.

That would make Celtic less predictable. It would also give Martin O’Neill an opportunity to make use of two forwards rather than continually asking one of them to carry the central attacking burden while the other waits for his chance.

Now, I am not claiming that these two will suddenly become the Scottish equivalent of football’s greatest attacking partnerships. Let us not get carried away and start building statues outside Celtic Park just yet!

However, I am saying that there are promising signs, and I would like to see Celtic investigate them. Because if O’Neill decides that they cannot play together, then fine.

But make that decision. Choose one.

If Duran is your first-choice striker, then start him and make Høgh compete for the position. If Høgh is the man you believe should lead the line, then build the attack around him and ask Duran to challenge him for the jersey.

There is nothing wrong with competition.

What I do not like is this sense that Celtic are trying to accommodate both players without actually committing to either a partnership or a hierarchy.

Football is not simply about collecting talented individuals and hoping they will magically understand one another. It is about creating partnerships, establishing patterns of play and giving players the opportunity to complement each other’s abilities.

If Høgh and Duran can offer Celtic something different together, why would we not investigate that possibility?

And if they cannot, then O’Neill needs to decide which one gives him the better chance of winning football matches.

Here comes the part where I become rather less diplomatic. Celtic cannot keep spending significant sums on players and then behave as though the responsibility for making those signings successful rests entirely on the individuals themselves.

Of course, Høgh must work hard. Of course, he must adapt to Scottish football, understand his teammates and take his opportunities when they arrive. Nobody is suggesting that he should be handed a guaranteed place simply because Celtic invested £11 million in him.

The same applies to Duran. But there must be a balance.

The coaching staff must identify their strengths, work on their weaknesses and decide on a system in which they can contribute effectively.

They must consider whether Høgh needs a partner, whether Duran is better leading the line alone, whether the two can complement each other, and whether the rest of the team’s movement helps or hinders whichever option they choose.

These are not unreasonable expectations. They are fundamental responsibilities. And if the current approach is not producing the desired results, then perhaps it is time to reconsider it rather than repeatedly expecting the same approach to produce a different outcome.

I would rather see Celtic properly experiment with Høgh and Duran together than watch one expensive signing after another become the subject of endless criticism while the underlying tactical questions remain unanswered.

But that experiment cannot continue indefinitely either. At some point, Martin O’Neill has to reach a conclusion. Can they play together?

If yes, then build a two-man forward line which gives both a genuine role and allows Celtic to make use of their different qualities.

If no, then select your number one striker and put the other man on the bench.

That is football. Fellow Celtic fans, I still believe in Kasper Høgh.

But I also believe that his situation cannot continue in this vague middle ground where we keep asking why he is not producing enough without first deciding what exactly we want him to do. I believe that his partnership with Camilo Duran deserves closer examination. I believe Celtic should consider whether Duran playing ahead of Høgh could unlock something that has been missing from our attacking play.

And if O’Neill tries it and concludes that it does not work, then at least we will have an answer. I am not demanding that Høgh become an untouchable figure in the starting eleven. Nobody should receive that privilege automatically.

Celtic is a club where performances matter, competition should be healthy, and the famous green and white jersey must always be earned. But I refuse to conclude that a player is the problem before examining whether we are using him properly.

That would be far too easy, wouldn’t it?

Celtic have invested £11 million in Høgh. Now I want to see that investment supported by intelligent coaching, tactical flexibility and a genuine attempt to bring out the best in him.

Give him the right service. Give him a partner who understands his movement. Give him the opportunity to build a connection with Duran and show us whether the two can become an effective attacking combination.

And if that does not work, make the decision. Pick one. Bench the other. What we cannot do is continue without a clear idea of what either player is supposed to be.

And, for goodness’ sake, let us stop expecting every new signing to arrive at Celtic Park, memorise the entire tactical playbook overnight and start scoring hat-tricks before he has even unpacked his suitcase.

Football does not work like that. My final mark for Celtic’s handling of Høgh? A disappointing C for now, with plenty of room for improvement. The potential is there, but the club must demonstrate that it knows how to develop it.

As for Kasper, my message is simple: keep working, keep believing, and let your football do the talking. And Martin O’Neill, the decision is yours.

Find a way to make Kasper Høgh and Camilo Duran work together, or decide which one you trust to lead the line. But please, make the decision.

Because right now, Celtic have two strikers and still somehow look as though they are searching for one.

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