Celtic boss Neil Lennon has done a sensible bit of expectation management in some recent comments. The Hoops boss said it is wrong to compare recent Hoops arrival Shane Duffy with one of Celtic’s legendary Bhoys from Seville, Bobo Balde.
The pair are both tough, uncompromising centre-backs. Indeed, Duffy recently said, as reported by the Daily Record, that Balde was one of his Celtic heroes.
Hoops boss managing expectations
However, Lennon was at pains to point out that is where the similarities end.
“If he has as good a career here as Bobo did then I’ll be absolutely delighted with that. I’m sure that’s a great compliment to Bobo, but he’s Shane Duffy, he’s a player in his own right” Lennon said, as quoted by the Scotsman.
Those are some very smart comments from Lennon. It is better to judge Duffy on his own merits, than to have him be compared to a player who won a host of trophies at Celtic Park.
Expectations are already sky-high regarding Duffy at Celtic. The reasons being, he has come from the Premier League, and is a big Celtic fan.
Too early to draw comparisons
There is no doubt that if he performs well, he can be a huge player for the Hoops this season. However, it is too early to draw comparisons between him and any former Celtic greats just yet. Hopefully in time those comparisons can be drawn.
As Lennon says, if Duffy can become as good a player as Balde was then that will be great news for the Hoops.
For those Celtic fans too young to remember, Bobo Balde was an uncompromising centre-back who took no prisoners and wasn’t afraid to put his head in where it counts.
In other words, everything that you want in a defender. Has the game changed since then? Yes. However, there is still a place in football for a no-nonsense defender. That’s what Bobo Balde was, and that is hopefully what Shane Duffy will be.
In other news, Michael Stewart doesn’t think Celtic will play three at the back against Ross County.
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