Brendan Rodgers has had a difficult start to his second spell at Celtic when it comes to team selection.
He hasn’t really been able to make a full assessment of his squad due to the spate of injuries the club has encountered over the last few months. Long-term injuries have been suffered by players who were expected to play big parts this season, with key men like Cameron Carter-Vickers, Liel Abada and the new signing Maik Nawrocki being the most high-profile casualties.
However, we have seen big improvements in the games of a lot of Celtic’s current crop of players, some expected and some that have come completely out of the blue.
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Liam Scales
The Irishman wasn’t expected to play any sort of role in the Celtic team this season, with the majority of supporters not even having Scales in consideration for a starting role.
Given this, there was considerable nerves amongst fans when Scales was thrust into a starting berth as a result of the aforementioned injury crisis that is currently crippling the club’s centre-back options.
It would have been easy for Scales to crumble under the scrutiny and lack of expectation in his performances from supporters and pundits alike, with every appearance being under the microscope, but he has risen to the occasion.
As a result of this, he has become one of the club’s key players under Brendan Rodgers, with his aerial duels and one-on-one defending coming on leaps and bounds this season.
His desire to improve, coupled with his never-say-die attitude have earned him praise from the supporters, to the point where it would be harsh to drop him when Celtic’s centre-back reinforcements start to return from injury.
Matt O’Riley
Unlike the aforementioned Liam Scales, much was expected of Danish midfielder Matt O’Riley under Brendan Rodgers.
He is the sort of player the manager likes, and has arguably been Celtic’s best player this season.
His creativity and improvement in front of goal have been there for all to see, but the often-understated defensive side of his game has come to the fold and has helped Celtic out in games where a bit more grit and fight is needed to get the result.
Daizen Maeda
Many feared the worst for Maeda when Rodgers came in, with the Japanese forward epitomising the rock & roll style of football that Ange Postecoglou introduced to Celtic Park.
Maeda has remained a key part of Rodgers system, however, and his importance to the squad has been even more evident in the last few weeks. His energy and relentless pressing has been needed more than ever following three red cards in two games, but Maeda stepped up and played like we had an extra man.
He has been singled out for praise by the manager recently and there are no doubts that he will have a pivotal part to play under Brendan Rodgers this season.
JAMES MCKENZIE // Follow James HERE
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