With the Daily Record reporting that he didn’t travel to Athens with the squad, Dedryck Boyata shouldn’t play another game for Celtic.
The Belgian international has had a falling out with the club after a move to Fulham for £9m fell through.
This has led to a war of words between Boyata’s agent and Brendan Rodgers. And it all smacks of a lack of loyalty from the centre-back.
With an apparent back-complaint ruling him out of the Hearts defeat, missing out on the trip to Athens must be the final straw for Rodgers and the Celtic board.
When Boyata arrived from Manchester City, Celtic plucked him out of obscurity. Providing the defender with a platform to perform, it allowed the Belgian to grow as a player.
Supporters have never been overly keen on the 27-year-old. Boyata has had an error-prone time at the heart of the Hoops’ back-line. This has led to calls for stronger cover at centre-back from sections of the support.
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However, Rodgers always stuck by Boyata, and defended him despite the swath of public opinion telling him otherwise. This should be enough for the former Manchester City kid to show some loyalty to his manager.
Instead, Boyata is sitting at home liking comments on Instagram about moving to Sevilla. Yet, what he should be doing is preparing for a mammoth second-leg clash in the Champions League qualifiers against AEK Athens.
There are ways that players should be conducting themselves when dealing with interest. Staying at home giving cryptic messages about wanting a move isn’t one of them.
For Celtic and Boyata’s case, it’s best that ties are cut and he moves on. A handful of World Cup appearances doesn’t make a player. Attitude and performance does.
Sadly, it appears Boyata may lack the former as well as the latter.