Rogic ready to unlock Danish defence Rogic ready to unlock Danish defence
● Lennon hints at key role for Aussie midfielder ● Manager says banned Christie is ‘a big loss’
Tom Rogic’s sole involvement in European football for Celtic so far this season has been a 30-minute cameo as a second-half substitute in their Europa League group stage victory over Lazio in Glasgow last October.
The gifted Australian midfielder has generally been a peripheral figure in Neil Lennon’s set-up since the start of the campaign, starting only eight matches across all competitions.
While injury has played some part in Rogic’s struggle to command more minutes on the pitch, a bigger factor has been the consistency and effectiveness of other creative talents at Lennon’s disposal.
But the Celtic manager has given a strong hint that Rogic is poised to be handed a key role for the Scottish champions on Thursday night as they attempt to overcome Copenhagen and reach the last 16 of the Europa League.
With the influential Ryan Christie unavailable through suspension for the second leg of a last-32 tie finely poised at 1-1 after last week’s absorbing contest in Denmark, Rogic is a leading contender to fill the attacking midfield role behind the strikers at Celtic Park.
Lennon was sufficiently impressed by the 27-year-old’s display in Sunday’s 3-1 win at home to Kilmarnock, when he made his first league start since 1 December, to regard him as ready for the Copenhagen challenge.
“Tom has got a great chance of playing,” said Lennon. “I thought he played really well at the weekend. He’s a top player when he’s on form. He’s just had an ongoing issue with his knee, and with the form of some other players, he’s found it difficult to get regular game time.
“He’s champing at the bit to play and he is certainly in our thoughts. I’ve had to put my arm around him a bit while he’s been out of the team. But he’s a great lad.
“He’s very, very talented and we’ll need a bit of creativity on Thursday night, maybe someone to unlock the door of the Copenhagen defence, and Tom’s the type of player who can do that.”
Lennon still feels hard done by at the absence of Christie whose ban was triggered by the booking he received for handball in conceding the Varawarded penalty kick in the first leg which was saved by Fraser Forster.
“You don’t like to lose Ryan because he’s a good player and he’s played really well in the last couple of games,” added Lennon. “So he’s a big loss. I think the suspension is harsh. Yes, give a penalty, but I didn’t think he deserved a yellow card.” On the flip side, Lennon is comforted by the return to fitness of his captain Scott Brown who limped off in the second half against Copenhagen last week with a calf problem.
“You know how influential he is to the team with the way he plays,” said Lennon. “To have him back is a massive boost. I thought we got a little bit ragged after he went off in the first leg and we just lost that influence a little bit, which is what he brings.
“Copenhagen upped their game and gave us a lot of problems in that second half. They had good rotation in midfield and their strikers were big and powerful. We became passive and came off it a bit. We weren’t as aggressive as we were in the first half. We’re going to need to be more aggressive in our pressing and our work rate on Thursday night.
“It could possibly be an open game again. We defended too deep in the second half. We didn’t need to, but they got the goal and the psychology of the game changed. They got a lift but we still got a couple of great chances on the counter attack and we looked dangerous. We looked as if we could score and I’m looking for more of that tomorrow night. Hopefully we can get the first goal, which could be important.”
Celtic have been tipped as potential winners of the Europa League this
“I think that maybe one day a Scottish team will get to another final, a Europa League final anyway. I’m hoping that’s going to be the case for us as we build”
NEIL LENNON
season by Lennon’s former teammate at the club, Paul Hartley.
While he understandably wants to play down those kind of expectations, he does feel it is a tournament in which reaching the final is not beyond the capabilities of Celtic during his second spell as manager.
“I was once asked if the last 16 of the Champions League is a glass ceiling for Scottish teams right now, but I always think that some day some team will come along and break that ceiling,” said Lennon.
“I also think that maybe one day a Scottish team will get to another final, a Europa League final anyway. I’m hoping that’s going to be the case for us as we build.
“But right now, I just want to get to the last 16 of this season’s competition and take it from there. We could get a doozy of a draw in there as well, that’s the exciting bit.”