Former Celtic hero Chris Sutton reckons Carl Starfelt deserves far more credit for his form this season and reckons some are unfairly highlighting his errors to paint a false picture of his contribution to the Bhoys.
After nursing a hamstring injury at the start of the season, Starfelt has gone on to make 31 appearances in all competitions under Ange Postecoglou this term, forming a rock-solid partnership with Cameron Carter-Vickers.
Carter-Vickers often gets most of the plaudits for the Bhoys’ defensive consistency but Sutton believes the Swedish international has been just as important and has called out over-the-top criticism of his mistakes.
Sutton said this weekend [The Daily Record]: “Starfelt is an absolute giant in Ange Postecoglou’s backline and due a whole load more credit than he gets from outside that dressing room. The Swedish international is every bit as important to Celtic’s defence as Carter-Vickers and it’s like people have a long-term memory complex.
“I’m fully aware Starfelt walked off a plane onto the pitch at Tynecastle for a debut on the opening day of last season and was all over the shop as Josh Ginnelly ran past him at the edge of the box to set-up a goal for Hearts pal Gary Mackay-Steven. That was a forgettable first moment in the shirt, yet it’s like he’s been branded by some from that moment onwards.
“Starfelt has made one or two other mistakes, of course he has. But so has everyone else. Kyogo Furuhashi has 49 goals for the club but he’s missed some golden chances. So has Daizen Maeda. So has Jota. Even Carter-Vickers makes them, such as when he was late on Cammy Devlin to give away a penalty against Hearts when Celtic were there on Premiership duty in October. The whole team across the pitch makes mistakes now and again, yet it seems Starfelt is one of those whose errors get picked apart.
“Put it this way, you ask Carter-Vickers in a quiet moment what he thinks of having Starfelt next to him and I’ll bet he loves it. Let’s not forget, Starfelt is playing as a right-footer on the left side, which makes his job trickier, but he just gets on with it. It’s under-the-radar contributions like his which make the Hoops so impressive. There is a squad full of boys who step up when needed.”
Starfelt will now have the responsibility to lead the defence through the next series of games. He’ll likely be playing alongside Yuki Kobayashi between now and the end of the season as the most senior central option. It’s key he steps up as a leader, as he has done before.
It’s nice to see him get a bit of high-profile credit in the media for a change, too. Hopefully he can demonstrate exactly what Sutton means on the pitch as the Bhoys march towards a potential treble of trophies.
In other news, Celtic youngster Ben McPherson gets first-team training call ahead of Hearts.
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