It’s that time of year when teams are submitting their squads for the upcoming European calendar.
Celtic were hoping they would be playing Champions League football, but self-inflicted wounds means that it’s a season in the Europa League for the champions of Scotland.
There is more talk about who hasn’t made the final cut under Brendan Rodgers than the players selected because Jahmai Simpson-Pusey has been left out by Celtic.
This is despite Simpson-Pusey moving to Glasgow this summer from Manchester City on a season-long loan deal.
- READ MORE: ‘We can’t’ – Presenter shuts down disrespect of Jahmai Simpson-Pusey amid Celtic transfer debate
Manchester City fans react after Jahmai Simpson-Pusey is left out of Celtic’s Europa League squad
If you look at it from a Manchester City perspective, you aren’t surprised that their supporters are baffled and annoyed by this call.
The Man City fans are calling for their club to recall Simpson-Pusey from his loan spell, including how he would have been better off playing in England’s second tier.
At the end of the day, when you send out a highly-rated youngster on a loan deal, you expect him to develop by playing, not sitting on the bench with zero minutes to his name so far, and being left out of the European squad altogether.
@TharealRoy17 can’t believe what he is reading: ‘Ain’t no way he’s THAT bad 😭😭😭😭😭.’
@legend_sliva_21 wants Manchester City to ‘do better’: ‘PL2 player of the season can’t get into a UEL squad. We need to do better at selecting clubs for our academy talents.’
@troyboy621 reminded everyone that Simpson-Pusey was starting in the Champions League last season: ‘We had this man starting in the CL last year #trenches.’
@J_MoneyCity89 wants Simpson-Pusey recalled: ‘They should just recall him.’
Another Man City fan questioning the club’s call to send Simpson-Pusey to Celtic, as @guaridiology stated: ‘Why did we not send him to a Championship club, where he could have played regularly, like Tosin and many others?!’
Another plea for a recall, as @blue_doody added: ‘Recall waste of time.’
@JakePritchardFC didn’t mince his words: ‘Recall Pusey. Celtic are a disgrace.’
@Dylan21LVA just needed three words: ‘CALL HIM BACK!’
@mbaalt8 thinks Man City have the ‘worst loan system’ in place: ‘The worst loan system in football strikes again.’
And the theme continued, as @NOLAN191012 added: ‘Bring him back.’
@jr_blinks warned Celtic that a recall in January could be on the cards: ‘Celtic was a bad idea. I think he’ll be recalled in January if he doesn’t get playing time.’
@papawills50 thinks it was a ‘poor’ call from Celtic: ‘Need to find him a new loan deal. Poor from Celtic. He needs good minutes this year!’
@DavidGr00471175 thinks Simpson-Pusey’s loan is already ‘wasted’: ‘Get him back here then. Wasted loan.’
Celtic are not doing themselves any favours
Don’t be surprised if Man City recall Simpson-Pusey in January because imagine how the player will be feeling, and what he is telling those back home.
This feels like an Alex Valle moment all over again, where the young Spanish left-back arrived on loan from Barcelona last summer, showed real promise, but his spell was cut short in the winter when the Kieran Tierney talk started.
And then Cesc Fabregas’s Como sign Valle for less than £6 million this summer, and you start to think, did Celtic miss a trick, especially given how the left-back situation has panned out this summer?!
You are hoping the same doesn’t happen here. Plus, you aren’t exactly building bridges, are you? These types of clubs will now second-guess loaning a player to Celtic again.
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