MONDAY JURY 3
Our top writers give their verdicts on the burning issues as we gear up for another big week in Scottish football at home and in the European arena
SCOTLAND will take on the Czech Republic in Olomouc this evening after all but should the game be going ahead with the Covid situation in the Czech camp?
This is all about UEFA protecting their TV contracts rather than looking after the health of those involved and their families. The whole thing stinks. 2 Yes. Dykes did everything that could have been expected of him even though he may have felt at times as if he was out there on his own. The manager has to find a way of getting players closer to him tonight.
The whole competition should be shelved this year never mind just tonight’s game. This is no time to be hopping all over the continent for a meaningless tournament that is just filling the schedules.
I think at times like this it should be a safety-first approach. We shouldn’t be taking chances when lives could be at risk. It is clear there is an issue when so many Czech players are refusing to play. The power of television is once again the be all and end all.
The Czechs may have jumped the gun in suggesting the game was off but their haste set alarm bells ringing that this fixture isn’t safe and there should be no risks in the current climate.
WE got our first look at Lyndon Dykes in a Scotland shirt against Israel – did the big striker look good enough for the international stage?
Dykes will do for us. He was too isolated for too long but he held the ball up well and brought in team-mates when they managed to get near his postcode. He’s a work in progress but deserves to be part of the national set-up.
Dykes certainly looked good as a hold-up striker. He gave us a presence and something to hit. We just need to get the ball into the box so we can really see him at his best, attacking the opposition goal.
I’m a huge fan and I thought Dykes led the line well, provided some nice lay-offs, worked tirelessly and the only time he was supplied with a ball into the box his knock down led to the penalty. A solid start.
CELTIC are back in for PSG left-back Mitchel Bakker but do you think Greg Taylor is good enough to hold down that position for the Hoops?
Taylor has done very little wrong but Neil Lennon needs to have another option at left back. If it’s a youngster like Bakker then Taylor will fancy his chances of keeping his place in the team.
Taylor has the tools to be a success at Celtic in the long term but Lennon does need competition in that position in the short term as Boli Bolingoli wasn’t good enough even before he went AWOL.
I don’t think there is any question that Taylor is good enough for the majority of the domestic games because Celtic play on the front foot. I think his height lets him down defensively and is an area that can be exploited against the top teams.
There appears to be question marks over Taylor among the Hoops support but he has proved for club and country he can handle the big stage and will get better. Any new signing should be back-up.
STEVEN DAVIS will equal Northern Ireland’s cap record tonight but is the midfielder still as important a player for Rangers as they look to stop the 10?