Ange Postecoglou has backed midfielder James McCarthy to put his injury problems behind him and make an impact at Celtic in coming matches.
McCarthy was named on the bench today for the first time since 3rd October, although didn’t come into the game as a substitute.
Nonetheless, his presence is welcome and it means he is now at the fitness required to again come into the manager’s plans.
Ange is hopeful, telling The Daily Record: “James McCarthy has had injuries and his pre-season was difficult but he’s back fit now and he’s available.
“He’ll get an opportunity in the coming weeks and hopefully he takes it. We brought James in because we wanted a strong squad.
“In the midfield area, we don’t have a lot of depth. He’s an important part of that so it will be good to get him involved again.
“Hopefully he gets back to the levels we know he can get to and I’m sure he’ll contribute.”
McCarthy certainly has had a difficult start to life at Celtic. Struggling to make appearances, when he has been on the pitch he’s rarely impressed supporters.
However, it sounds like Postecoglou sees a brighter future ahead for the Republic of Ireland international. That’s promising, although it’s not in defensive midfield where our issues lie.
Our midfield issues are a bit further forward, with the absence of Tom Rogic really impacting the team’s creativity up against Livingston today.
That’s what we need to fix against Ferencvaros and Dundee over the coming week.
In other news, Livingston boss David Martindale hits back at his Celtic critics.
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