Celtic’s meeting with Dundee tonight is a significant occasion for Luke McCowan, who will face his former club for the first time since leaving for Parkhead in the summer.
After his £1 million move to the Bhoys from Dens Park, the 26-year-old has taken to his new environment like a duck to water amid a series of impressive displays under Brendan Rodgers.
Earning his first start last weekend, Luke McCowan opened the scoring for Celtic at Motherwell to help his side run out convincing 3-0 winners at Fir Park.
Speaking ahead of the Hoops’ clash against Dundee tonight, Rodgers signalled McCowan has been unlucky not to get more Celtic starts, detailing that he alongside others have been denied purely due to the imperious form of his side.
Considering the adjustment the midfielder has had to make in such a short space of time, he has dealt admirably with the step-up to featuring for the Scottish Premiership champions.
With tonight’s game under the lights set to be an emotional one for McCowan, Tony Docherty has delivered his verdict on his start at Parkhead.
Tony Docherty unsurprised Luke McCowan Celtic rise
Speaking to The Courier, Docherty indicated he finds McCowan’s start to life at Celtic ‘no surprise’ as he has a detailed understanding of his characteristics from his time at Dens Park.
He explained: “No, not to me whatsoever. I knew his qualities when I had him here, not just as a player but as a person as well, everything he brings.
“So absolutely no surprise to me. I speak with him quite regularly and I’m pleased he’s doing really well. But he’s an opponent tomorrow night so we’ll be doing all we can to stop him being happy.
“We gave him a lot of leadership here that he hadn’t had previously and he absolutely responded to that. He’s kicked on as a result, I think.”
Luke McCowan will want to become a Celtic starter
It goes without saying, but anyone enjoying a breakthrough moment at the Bhoys will then have designs on making their way into the starting line-up on a regular basis.
Earlier this week, McCowan signalled he can handle the pressure of starting for Celtic and has vowed to do everything he can to force his way into the reckoning.
He stated: “I kind of need to go and prove that I deserve a start and deserve to be playing and I think I’ve done well enough to do that. It’s about scoring goals and getting assists, so I need to try and do that. It’s about getting three points and doing that game by game, so that’s my kind of job.”
Aware of his surroundings and the tough competition for places at Celtic, you get the impression McCowan is only beginning his story at Parkhead.
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