Marvin Bartley shocked Celtic player is starting again for Brendan Rodgers, after turnaround

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Brendan Rodgers is a hard man to please, as the Celtic players have found out of late.

Only a fortnight ago, Celtic were losing to St Johnstone, and despite being on the cusp of the Premiership title, Rodgers called out his players and made his feelings clear.

The Irishman wasn’t happy with the mentality of the starting men, despite the enormous success on the field of play, which could also end with the Treble and a definite 55th Premiership crown.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	CelticCeltic	33	26	3	4	97	22	75	81
2	RangersRangers	33	20	6	7	68	35	33	66
3	HibernianHibernian	33	14	11	8	54	41	13	53
4	Dundee UtdDundee Utd	33	14	8	11	41	40	1	50

That’s why it wasn’t a surprise to see the Celtic manager ring the changes when struggling Kilmarnock visited Glasgow over the weekend.

From top to bottom, Rodgers wasn’t afraid to drop senior stars to the bench, including the likes of Nicolas Kuhn, Jota and Jeffrey Schlupp.

But, amid the axe being wielded, Marvin Bartley feels one man has benefited from it all, and he wanted to give him his flowers.

• READ MORE: Celtic told something happened vs Kilmarnock that could affect Greg Taylor’s Parkhead future

Marvin Bartley surprised by Greg Taylor’s return to Celtic’s XI

Everyone seemingly thought that Greg Taylor was going to leave Celtic in the summer, and his days of starting were also over after Schlupp’s impressive displays since joining.

But one poor performance from the on-loan Crystal Palace star has landed him on the bench, which Taylor took by producing a Man of the Match display against Killie.

Bartley lauded the left-back for his efforts and how he didn’t expect him to return to Celtic’s XI, because he felt being axed after Bayern Munich would ‘affect him mentally’, as he told Clyde 1 Superscoreboard.

On his top performer from the weekend: “I am going for Greg Taylor,” said Bartley. “We all know he has the physical ability to do what he did on Saturday.

“But, we spoke about the Bayern Munich game when he dropped out of the team, and how it would affect him mentally. I think he played a game after that. He didn’t look himself.

“But, to bounce back, he has obviously been training well. A top, top professional. But mentally, he is engaged as well. Didn’t think he would start another game for Celtic, but he has, and then he gets Man of the Match.

“So, Greg Taylor, a massive week for Celtic, but also a big one for him.”

Taylor’s stats for Celtic this season

With Kieran Tierney returning next season, it would be perfect for Rodgers and Celtic to have Taylor, and the returning boyhood fan compete for a starting spot at left-back.

When you consider Tierney’s injury issues, the extra European matches, then it’s much needed.

Plus, with a rating of 7.10 by WhoScored for his Premiership displays this term, there is plenty more for Taylor to provide Celtic on the domestic stage.