Celtic midfielder Luke McCowan is the talk of the town among Scottish football circles amid his goal against Motherwell last weekend in his first start for the Bhoys.
After a series of impressive substitute appearances, Brendan Rodgers offered the 26-year-old his first chance to shine from the beginning in green and white. It is fair to say he took his opportunity.
Despite the home side making some early inroads, Luke McCowan opened the scoring for Celtic against Motherwell in some style, capitalising on the break of the ball before slamming low past Aston Oxborough from outside the area.
Putting on an adventurous display in midfield, the £1 million Celtic summer signing showed he wasn’t risk-averse in possession, taking on four shots and threading six passes into the final third, per Fotmob.
With McCowan earning rave reviews for his start at Celtic, pundit Michael Stewart has dropped his verdict on where the Greenock-born man stands in the midfield pecking order.
Michael Stewart’s Luke McCowan Celtic pecking order verdict
Speaking on the Scottish Football Social Club, Stewart has indicated he would rank McCowan above Paulo Bernardo in the Celtic pecking order and believes it won’t be too long until he lands a Scotland call-up.
He explained: “Luke McCowan, for me, falls in the same category as this when we’re talking about the middle of the park and some people talking about (saying) he won’t be able to get enough game-time.
“For me, this is my own personal view, I would have him higher in the pecking order than Bernardo, for example.
“Later, he added on his Scotland prospects: “If he manages to get a run of games consistently at Celtic and he performs and scores goals the way we know he can, he’s not going to be far away from it.
“Obviously, you’ve got a double-header coming in a few weeks, and then there’s a break until March again, so he’s got time there, if he’s able to put a real run together, perhaps, looking forward to the World Cup qualifiers starting in March, I think he could be in with a really good shout of getting in there. He’s certainly good enough; he’s got all the attributes.”
Michael Stewart’s comments are harsh on Paulo Bernardo
While McCowan is fast turning into a Celtic star, Bernardo’s excellent contribution this term also deserves to be heralded.
With the Portugal Under-21 international now a permanent asset, he has created 17 chances on Scottish Premiership duty this term alongside showing his versatility at the weekend in a holding role.
Celtic landed Bernardo for just £3.5 million in the summer, and he is showing weekly that the fee they paid for his services is turning out to be a bargain in the grand scheme of things.
To rank McCowan over Bernardo is a matter of personal opinion. Either way, supporters will continue to enjoy both thriving in Glasgow’s east end.
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