Even at the tender age of 18, Dane Murray already has an important period ahead of him for Celtic.
For now, it appears as though he’s been chosen to remain with the Celtic B team for now. That’s where he’s been playing regularly since the UCL tie against Midtjylland over a month ago.
But that was a tie Murray showed up well in. Outside of some sloppy passes from time to time, Celtic fans were left impressed by how he imposed himself on the Danes. Particularly in the tough away leg in which we were ultimately dumped out.
Murray was one of the few to come out with glowing praise from fans. Ange Postecoglou stated back then that he had big potential, and also hailed his character and his quality in training too [The Scotsman].
Naturally, of course, we needed the centre-back areas strengthened. It was a joke that Celtic had to go into a game of such magnitude with a backline containing so much inexperience. Murray featured alongside Stephen Welsh, and both were terrific given the situation.
But with the additions of Carl Starfelt and Cameron Carter-Vickers, Murray is back down the pecking order again. Going by our current options, you could say he’s fifth choice if you include Nir Bitton as an option.
Dane Murray – a Celtic centre-back of tomorrow
So it’s clear that, for now, Postecoglou sees him as one for the future. That’s all well and good, but it’s difficult to see what exposure to the Lowland League with the B team does for him after tasting UCL football. Especially when he showed that he’s capable of operating at a level close to it if not those particular heights as of yet.
Other young talents bagged loan moves in the summer, which was great to see. The likes of Scott Robertson and Lee O’Connor need to be playing regular football and are too good for Lowland League level. But the same goes for Murray, who should be given the platform to play senior football at first-team level elsewhere.
The sooner we get our youngsters out on loan, the quicker they’ll develop, both physically and mentally. And whilst that won’t happen before January, it’s vital that Murray keeps himself featuring regularly for the B side and staying injury-free.
If he can do just that, there’s no reason he shouldn’t be considered for a temporary spell away during the second half of the season. There’s no point hanging on to players who are ready to be tested. Especially if those players aren’t in our immediate first-team plans.
The Lowland League serves a purpose in developing players physically. But given Murray’s performances against Midtjylland, he’s ready for a higher level even this early into his career.
Here’s hoping he can therefore keep the momentum going over the next few months before the January window comes around. If Postecoglou isn’t going to use him at all this season, he deserves an opportunity to test himself with greater challenges than the B team can provide.
In other news, What Ange Postecoglou must do to take Celtic up another level
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