Celtic overcame Sligo Rovers by a 3-2 margin on Wednesday night thanks to a hat-trick from Honduran star Luis Palma.
Palma fired the Bhoys into an early lead before Rovers reversed their deficit to a 2-1 scoreline with two quick goals, capitalising on some poor goalkeeping from Scott Bain.
Celtic pressure mounted, and Palma equalised late on before sealing the winner in stoppage time to give him a much-needed morale boost during a difficult time for him at the club.
The match also gave Brendan Rodgers a chance to see some of the young players coming through the Celtic Academy.
Lenny Agbaire, Francis Turley, Jude Bonnar and Lewis Dobbie all started the fixture. Later, Mitchell Robertson, Liam Bonetig, Sean McArdle and Samuel Isiguzo were used as substitutes.
It was invaluable exposure to a first-team mentality for the young group, and it also allowed them the opportunity to impress Rodgers on and off the pitch during an away trip.
Brendan Rodgers’ demand for Celtic youngsters after Sligo Rovers test
Speaking after the match, Rodgers explained what he now wants to see from the club’s emerging stars as they progress their careers.
The Celtic boss said: “I think it’s physicality. A lot of them need to improve on that aspect. They need to have more running power and get into contention more. They have talent with the ball, but it’s nowhere near enough.
“That physicality will allow them to play at a higher tempo, but it’s nice for them to feel that and play out there in front of a crowd and play with that personality that you need to play for Celtic. Some of them did really, really well.”
Celtic boss’ verdict on Wednesday night trip to Ireland
Rodgers was pleased with the test provided by Sligo Rovers. The home side ran the Scottish champions close in front of a sold-out crowd, giving Celtic plenty to think about.
The manager said: “It was a really good exercise for us. A lot of our senior players got 90 minutes in, which was great.
“The second half was much better than the first. We had a better tempo, better rhythm and more speed in our game, so we were very good in the second half.
“It was excellent to come out here to Ireland – it was a great little test for us with how they played and worked, overall, I’m really pleased.
“You can see why they’re a top-six team in the League of Ireland. They’ll be fighting for European football and are at a good level of fitness. They passed the ball well and with confidence.
“It was a good test, especially for some of our boys who haven’t played for a little bit of time. As the game went on, we were just more aggressive in the game and pushed into a higher starting position and that allowed us to attack a lot more.”
Celtic will now have a few days break from training before returning to Lennoxtown in preparation for next weekend’s big Scottish Premiership match at home to Aberdeen.
This was a productive way to spend the early stages of the international break and will hopefully not only serve the academy youngsters well, but also players such as Palma and Luke McCowan – both of whom needed a start.
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