Stephen Welsh’s situation at Celtic is one to look out for in the next couple of weeks.
The January transfer window is still open, and to nobody’s surprise, the Celtic board haven’t been able to sign a right-sided centre-back, even though Cameron Carter-Vickers has been injured since October.
Given that a defender hasn’t been signed, the call has been made to bring back Welsh from Motherwell, even though he was pencilled in for the whole season.
This has disappointed the Celtic Park faithful, but Michael Stewart thinks Welsh could surprise a few people.
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Should Martin O’Neill start Stephen Welsh against Falkirk?
Stephen Welsh’s return to Celtic compared to Liam Scales
First and foremost, it needs to be noted that Welsh has been performing very well at Motherwell, so it’s not like he is returning to Celtic without any confidence.
But it’s one thing doing it for Motherwell, and it’s a completely different animal trying to make it work for the champions of Scotland.
Speaking on Premier Sports, Stewart thinks Welsh ‘has the quality’ to become a first-team player, and Liam Scales is a prime example that he can break through.
“Does Stephen Welsh, if he plays for Celtic in this window, only option is to either go back to Motherwell or stay at Celtic?” said Stewart.
“You can only play for the two teams in one season. So, there are quite a few moving parts here. Definitely feel for Stephen Welsh. I think he has shown that he is capable. It’s all about momentum.
“If he gets his chance in this Celtic side in the next couple of weeks and performs well. We saw what happened with Liam Scales. He went out to Aberdeen and did relatively well. Came back, and it looked like he was going to sign permanently for Aberdeen.
“Then, all of a sudden, he got a chance, and now he is a first-team regular, so I wouldn’t write him off completely, by the way, at Celtic. I think he has the quality.”
Do you agree with Callum’s predicted XI for the Falkirk game?
When will Welsh get his Celtic chance?
Celtic play Falkirk on Wednesday night in the Premiership, and then they will be in Scottish Cup action on Sunday when they face Auchinleck Talbot.
It looks as though Auston Trusty will be fit for Falkirk, so perhaps Welsh’s best chance to earn a start is against Auchinleck Talbot.
Either way, Stewart thinks Welsh needs those minutes, as soon as possible, or else his return to Celtic will quickly turn into frustration.
“What’s key here is that he needs to get a chance quickly,” added Stewart.
“If it dissipates, and it sort of prolongs the period of a couple of weeks, it’s amazing how quickly it could slip back into that frustrated mindset, and feeling like he’s not going to get a chance at Celtic.
“If it happens in the next week or two, it’s all up to him.”
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