Paulo Bernardo is finding game time hard to come by at Celtic.
But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot of love for Bernardo out there, who was once again a substitute at the weekend.
Celtic drew 0-0 with Hibernian, and now on Thursday evening, the champions of Scotland will host Braga of Portugal in the Europa League.
Whilst many don’t expect Brendan Rodgers to start Bernardo, even with Hatate an injury doubt, it still doesn’t mean that fans and pundits aren’t realising what he brings to the table for Celtic.
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Dylan McGeouch was at Celtic Park to watch the team in action against Hibs, and he has shared that there was a ‘massive’ cheer when Bernardo came onto the pitch.
Speaking to Open Goal, McGeouch gave Bernardo his flowers, including how he was ‘one of the best players’ for Celtic last term.
The rest of the Open Goal panel agreed with McGeouch, including how it’s ‘weird’ that he doesn’t seem to play more under Rodgers.
Andy Halliday: “Am I right in saying, you were there, was there not like a massive cheer when Bernardo came on?”
McGeouch: “Aye. Massive. That’s the first time he has come on, isn’t it?!”
Si Ferry: “He must have done something to Rodgers.”
McGeouch: “I thought he was one of the best players last season. I thought he was brilliant. I thought he was really good. He always affected the game. Always.”
Paul Slane: “It’s weird, isn’t it? He hasn’t had a sniff at all.”
Halliday: “The amount of options Celtic have in the middle of the pitch. That are good options. Like McCowan. I have said for ages, McCowan has deserved a run in the team for a while.”
Who is ahead of Bernardo in the Celtic pecking order?
When Benjamin Nygren signed for Celtic in the summer, many thought he was coming in to replace Nicolas Kuhn on the right wing.
After all, Nygren did play on the flanks for FC Nordsjælland, but Rodgers has, instead, put him in the number eight role.
That has made matters worse for Bernardo because it means another player has pushed ahead of him in the midfield pecking order, and going by who Rodgers starts and the first changes he makes from the bench, it’s pretty clear what the midfield pecking order looks like.
Players ahead of Bernardo at Celtic:
- Reo Hatate
- Benjamin Nygren
- Callum McGregor
- Luke McCowan
- Arne Engels
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