Jozo Simunovic’s form continues to impress many onlookers, with yesterday being his peak.
On a day of mass celebration of the life of Billy McNeill, Simunovic scored the only goal of the game after 67 minutes. The fact that he wears shirt number five, the same shirt number worn by Cesar, it was a fitting tribute to the man on the day.
But, for Simunovic, it was also vindication of his run in the team. Neil Lennon has now included him in his last five starting XIs. Throughout all of those matches, the opposition have failed to net against this stiff Celtic rearguard of he and Kristoffer Ajer.
It’s a far cry from the days of him being fourth choice at Parkhead. And, speaking to the Celtic official website post-match yesterday, Simunovic was delighted to have faith continuously put into him.
“The manager keeps putting his trust in me. He has had a chat with every player and he told me what he expects from me. I’m just following that.
“We keep keeping clean sheets and that’s how we need to keep going. Of course, trophies are also special, but this goal and win today, for me, is something else.
“I believed it was going to be a special day for me because of the number 5, because of the turnout of supporters, and because of my team-mates and coaching staff. For everyone it meant a lot, but for me it was something special.”
Fair to say this is how we’ll line-up for now
Simunovic’s place in the Celtic starting XI has been earned. He’s continuously been putting in dominating performances against the likes of Sam Cosgrove, Florian Kamberi, and Eamonn Brophy respectively. Perhaps they aren’t household names, but they’re proven Premiership strikers who have hurt us in the past.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Simunovic’s run in the team has been his composure on the ball. The Hoops have been able to rely on Jozo to keep the ball and do the basics to perfection.
Added to that, he’s also recently been taking on the role Ajer carries out in striding out from the back and going on mazy runs. Against Kilmarnock yesterday, he had one or two of those of his own once again, and came close to bagging an assist in the second-half.
This also read badly for Filip Benkovic. He may have come up to Scotland for game-time, but Lennon hasn’t fancied throwing him in over players contracted to be here next season. Considering there are only four games left before Celtic’s season ends completely, it’s fair to say that Benkovic will have to settle for a squad player role unless anything happens to Ajer or Simunovic.
But Jozo deserves plenty of praise for his ability to step up when needed. He and Ajer have made sure our dodgy form hasn’t been disastrous. Considering Simunovic wasn’t a regular before Lennon’s arrival, he deserves all the plaudits going for some fine form.
Here’s hoping it now carries on to two massive away trips to Pittodrie and Ibrox respectively.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
