TURNBULL SHOULD BE FIRST PICK FOR CELTIC
THE winds of change are blowing through Celtic Park. For starters, Scott Brown has now been an unused substitute in each of the past two games.
For the first time in two-and-ahalf months, i n a run which stretched back to the start of October, the team have also now won back-to-back games.
Celtic fans who have been calling for Brown to be dropped all season will argue that those two points are not unrelated.
Listen, I’ve got far too much respect for Brown — both as a man and a player — to write him off. But there’s no doubt the club captain is beginning to be eased aside.
In saying that, I still fully expect him to be back in the team for the Scottish Cup final next weekend. Against an in-form Hearts side, Celtic will need Brown’s big-game experience.
It’s a big call for Neil Lennon to make. But, for me, it’s a no-brainer that Brown will come back into the team, most probably at the expense of Ismaila Soro.
Take absolutely nothing away from Soro. He has been excellent against Lille and Kilmarnock and is finally looking like he belongs in a Celtic jersey.
But Brown is a serial winner and, in what could prove to be a tight game, he knows how to drag Celtic over the line. His experience will be invaluable.
Having opted to shake it up against Lille and Kilmarnock, Lennon clearly has some selection dilemmas ahead of facing Hearts.
I don’t think it’s as black and white as just saying: ‘Lennon will either stick with this team or go back to the old guard’. I expect it will be a blend of the two.
What should not be in any doubt, however, is David Turnbull’s name being the first on the teamsheet. He simply has to play in the cup final.
With a goal and two assists in the past two games, the young midfielder has made a dramatic difference to Celtic.
A midfielder who oozes class and composure on the ball, Turnbull looks as if he was born to play for Celtic. He’s an entertainer. He has helped lift the performances of others around him.
Celtic’s play in the final third has looked more dangerous. He has quickened the tempo and brought a real cutting edge with his array of passing.
But i t poses an obvious question: why on earth did he spend the first three months of the season twiddling his thumbs on the bench?
I don’t buy this theory that Celtic shouldn’t be relying on a young kid to turn things around. Or that Turnbull is being burdened with too much pressure to act as the team’s saviour.
For anyone who hasn’t been paying attention, he was the best young player in the country by a mile prior to the injury which scuppered his initial move to Celtic last year.
It doesn’t matter that he’s only 21. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough — and there’s no doubt that Turnbull has all the ability and attributes you’d want in a modern midfielder.
Celtic paid £3.5milllion to sign him from Motherwell. For that sort of money, they should expect him to make a difference — and that’s exactly what he’s doing.
Conor Hazard is another player who has come into the side over these past two games and the young keeper certainly hasn’t done much wrong. Surely he now has to start in the cup final? I would find it very strange if Lennon now reverted back to Vasilis Barkas for no apparent reason.
It’s really bizarre in away. Because regardless of who plays in goal for Celtic — whether it’s Hazard, Barkas or Scott Bain — the best goalkeeper on the pitch will be wearing a Hearts jersey.
The problems Celtic have had with keepers this season just highlights how much of a mistake it was for them to let Craig Gordon leave the club on a free back in the summer.
Hearts are flying at the moment in the Championship and there is no doubt that Robbie Neilson’s side will present a stiff test for Celtic.
I still think it’s premature to suggest that all is rosy at Celtic. If they end up losing to Hearts next weekend, then it’ll be back to square one with fans calling for heads to roll.
But finally there are small signs of progress. Two wins on the bounce is a step in the right direction. They might not have turned the corner fully, but they’ve at least switched the indicator on.