Who plays left-back for Celtic against Valencia in the Europa League on Thursday will be intriguing.
First choice Kieran Tierney has only just returned to training and hasn’t played since December. His natural replacement Emilio Izaguirre is currently out with an injury.
That might mean Jonny Hayes is the player who starts. If that is the case, he wouldn’t let Celtic down.
Hayes had probably his best game for the Hoops in the 5-0 Scottish Cup win over St Johnstone. He was solid in defence, and his run and pass to set up James Forrest for his goal was excellent.
It would be a gamble to start Hayes in the game. He has been a squad player at best for the Hoops this season, and Valencia could well target him as a weak link of the team. Hayes is naturally a winger, but he would potentially have to curb his instincts against Valencia.
But it should be remembered that this is a player Brendan Rodgers signed for the Hoops. He must have saw something in him to bring him to Celtic Park.
What he would have seen is a hard-working player who is hard-working player who is able to play out of position when the situation demands it.
The Hoops will hope to have either Tierney or Izaguirre available for the second leg against Valencia. But should Hayes start against the first leg, Rodgers will be confident the player won’t let him down.
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