Charlie Mulgrew was particularly effusive of two players during Celtic’s win over Falkirk.
The Hoops breezed past the Bairns in the Premier Sports Cup second round as a terrific second-half performance sent Celtic into the quarter-finals.
Premier Sports pundit Mulgrew loved Alistair Johnston’s display at right-back and thinks the Canadian is that good, he goes under the radar at times.
Johnston scored on the night, as did Dane Murray and Daizen Maeda. But it was a midfielder who really caught Mulgrew’s eye.
- READ MORE: Charlie Mulgrew blown away by ‘quality’ Celtic star who Brendan Rodgers ‘must be so thankful for’
Mulgrew and Rodgers on Arne Engels vs Falkirk
Mulgrew was really impressed by £11m midfielder Arne Engels against Falkirk, and that wasn’t a surprise because the Belgian’s set-piece deliveries were stunning.
That pace and precision in his corner-taking was second to none, and young Murray profited when he scored his header in the second period.
Mulgrew highlighted Engels to Brendan Rodgers when the Celtic boss spoke to Premier Sports after the game, saying that the Celtic ace is one of Europe’s best dead-ball specialists.
Mulgrew: “I thought Arne Engels’ delivery tonight was unbelievable. There cannot be much better going about in Europe?”
Rodgers: “No. You know as a big centre-half, the cross for big Dane, that was brilliant. And Gav (Gavin Strachan) was working on that, getting it into the middle of the area, timed his run perfectly.
“But all night, I think he had one towards the end of the first-half where it just fell short. Everything else…speed, delivery, precision was great.
“I thought he was good, Arne. He tired a wee bit, gets a bit leggy and the technique goes, you kick it out and all sorts. But he and Dane were good.”
Rodgers on ‘negativity’ that has surrounded Engels
Rodgers then spoke to the press inside Celtic Park and Engels was brought up again. And this time, the Celtic boss acknowledged that there has been ‘negativity’ around the Belgian since his arrival.
However, he stressed that Engels is one for the future and has massive potential. Rodgers said: “Yeah, I think there’s obviously negativity around Arne and some of these guys.
“There’s a lot on his shoulders as an expensive player. But we bought potential. The club has bought potential many times. And a lot of them aren’t here.
“This is a guy who has potential, but it costs a little bit more. And you have to pay that little bit more because if you’re going to be sat away in Bayern Munich and watching the team play and he has that athleticism, then that’s what you need because it costs you money.
“He’s nowhere near the finished article. We’ve just had to pay more for potential. You can buy potential at a million quid and two million quid.
“A lot of the time, it doesn’t work. Sometimes it does. I will tell you a lot of time it doesn’t.
“But him, we’ve had to pay a little bit more to get the athleticism, to get the physicality that this team needed.
“And now I’ve got great options in there. Guys that are physical, but guys that are technical. So I don’t complain.”
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