Celtic have suffered yet another injury setback after Nir Bitton pulled his groin with the Israel national squad.
Bitton inexplicably went on international duty with his country after being out injured for two months. Indeed, he started last weekend’s Glasgow derby only the bench. It was the first time he was seen in a squad since the 2-1 home loss to St Mirren back in January.
But his injury-ravaged season continues to unravel. Bitton didn’t feature in Israel’s 2-0 home loss to Denmark on Thursday – the first of their World Cup qualifying matches. That raised an eyebrow considering it seemed pointless to call him up and then not play him.
However, it’s been revealed that Nir has picked up a groin tear as he heads back to Parkhead.
As quoted by the Scottish Sun, the Israel FA said: “Nir Bitton was injured in the concluding training session and was not included in the squad against Denmark. He has suffered a small tear in his groin, was released from the squad and will not play against Scotland and Moldova.”
Celtic must be rolling their eyes; Nir Bitton and his Israel trips have cost us badly this season
This isn’t the first time Bitton has been called up when nursing knocks. Back in October, he played 120 minutes despite having a swollen foot. He would then pick up Covid and wouldn’t be able to play in a derby against Rangers – one we lost 2-0.
And this is just the latest example of Bitton’s trips back home going awry. He should never have gone in the first place since he had been suffering from ankle ligament damage over the last weeks. Any injury at this stage could keep him out for the rest of the season.
Thankfully, according to the Israel FA at least, it’s only a small groin tear. But it could still leave Bitton sidelined for a month or two, even if it’s a minor one. And that leaves us with only Stephen Welsh and Kris Ajer as reliable centre-back options.
Sure, Shane Duffy is available, but he hasn’t proven he can be trustworthy this season. Chris Jullien, meanwhile, is crocked and won’t feature until next season. We still need as many reliable centre-back options fit and firing as we can in order to ensure a powerful end to the season.
But at this rate you wouldn’t imagine relationships between Celtic and Israel to be at an all-time high.
Ahead of next season, Celtic will need to be firmer about allowing Bitton to depart, especially when injured.
In other news, a Lennoxtown starlet sparked a late international comeback with a big goal.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
