Oliver Burke has tonight done himself no favours ahead of the Glasgow derby against Rangers next Sunday.
The on-loan Celtic man was given his first start for Scotland in two years against Kazakhstan. Interestingly, he started on the left too. That’s a position he’s yet to play in at Celtic.
The match itself ended in a shambolic 3-0 opening-day defeat to the Kazakhs in Euro 2020 qualifying. Burke was hardly the only one to underperform – absolutely everyone in dark blue did on a shameful night for the country.
But Burke is the man looking to impress Neil Lennon ahead of Sunday. He was dropped from the Celtic starting XI to face Dundee. He didn’t come on at Dens Park either – suggesting he may have lost his place.
The Kazakhstan match this afternoon was his big chance to impress Lennon. He failed to do it.
Granted, Burke did have a couple of good runs down the left. He seemed to beat his full-back on several occasions in the first 45. But his first touch continues to be poor, and his end-product was sadly lacking against the Kazakhs.
Who does Lennon drop for Burke?
Given the fact Odsonne Edouard has netted two winners for Lennon, it’s difficult to see him dropping the Frenchman.
Scott Sinclair and James Forrest have started every game under the interim Celtic boss too. Therefore, it would be a real surprise to see Lennon drop either of them too.
Burke’s performance could easily be put down to the fact he’s played as a striker since January. Alex McLeish, this afternoon, saw him as a left-winger, but it just didn’t work.
The likes of Forrest, Scott Bain, and Callum McGregor had nothing to brag about either. All three, however, are nailed on starters for Celtic. They don’t have as much to prove to Lennon as Burke currently does. And, after the Kazakhstan mauling, it’s difficult to see how he starts against Rangers.
It’s looking like a spot on the bench this Sunday could be the best thing for Burke. What happens against San Marino should be totally irrelevant.
It’s just not been his day today.
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