‘If I’m in contention for Player of the Year, that’s a great thing. It would mean the world to me
Sinclair plumbed the depths on the fringes with Villa last term but now top Bhoy is riding a title juggernaut
AYEAR ago, Scott Sinclair was stuck in a rut, a bit-part fringe player for an Aston Villa team on an irreversible slide towards Premier League relegation. If the losing habit was impossible for Villa to shake off, the winger has pleasingly found it just as hard to stray from a winning groove at his new club.
Celtic have now strung together a run of 21 straight Premiership victories and Sinclair’s contribution to that run makes him arguably the outstanding contender for the country’s Player of the Year awards.
Reunited with Brendan Rodgers, initially his mentor at Chelsea and later the manager who drew out his best form at Swansea City, Sinclair has relit the fire under his career this season, his 16 goals helping to extinguish the gloom that descended during a miserable campaign at Villa Park.
On this very weekend in 2016 he was a second-half substitute in a 2-1 defeat at Stoke City, a result that fell within a run of 11 consecutive defeats.
‘That feels like a long, long time ago — a world away,’ admits the 27-year-old. ‘Football goes so quickly; it moves on and you don’t look back.
‘Being honest, that stage of my career was very tough but you need to go through periods like that. What happened then made me stronger as a person. It made me even hungrier and made me want to play regularly again.
‘I’m enjoying my football and that’s been the case since the minute I came up here.
‘Even back when I wasn’t playing as much as I wanted, I was still doing the hard graft behind the scenes and even staying behind to do extra sessions.
‘Hopefully that’s all paying off now but the most important thing for me is to be consistent and, up until now, I feel that I have been.
‘If I’m in contention for the Player of the Year award, that’s a great thing. It would mean the world to me.’
If Sinclair is likely to be shortlisted for the player award, Rodgers already seems nailed on to be crowned Manager of the Year. Although five times consecutive title winners, Celtic’s performance levels had drifted under Ronny Deila and Rodgers arrived with a plan to raise standards across the board.
The acquisitions of Sinclair and Moussa Dembele — who scored both goals in yesterday’s 2-0 win over Hamilton — immediately enhanced the quality of footballer in the team but Sinclair admits Rodgers’ management brings out the very best in him.
A stellar season in Swansea’s first Premier League campaign resulted in an irresistible £6million transfer to Manchester City. If there was no shame in failing to oust the likes of David Silva from the team, the time spent trying, coupled with a total of 18 wasted months at Villa, left the equivalent of a black hole in the centre of his career.
‘It’s always good to work with a manager you know,’ he reflects. ‘I had played the best football of my career under Brendan at Swansea and then there was a massive gap where I hadn’t shown what I can do.
‘Now, after reuniting with him, I’m back to my best form. He was the reason I got the move to Manchester City and a lot of people seemed to forget that.
‘I won promotion with Swansea and played for a season in the Premier League with them and it’s nice to be back with someone who likes and supports you and, essentially, gives you the confidence to go out there and play.
‘He has high expectations, which is great. He pushes you every day, every training session and every game. He’s so demanding and that’s what you need to make you better every day.’
Rodgers displayed the protective side of his managerial model through the week by calling for greater protection for his players in the wake of a couple of hazardous moments in recent matches.
The studded challenge of Motherwell’s Ryan Bowman on Kieran Tierney drew blood and back-page headlines but Rodgers was even more irate at the time over a reckless lunge by Inverness’s Iain Vigurs on Sinclair in a Scottish Cup-tie.
‘If you’re a quick winger you’re always going to get brought down,’ says Sinclair. ‘That’s all part of the game, the only problem is when it’s a little more vicious.
‘There have been a couple recently where someone maybe should have been sent off but, hopefully, the ref can take note. ‘I’ve been used to it in my career. In the past few games I’ve been getting doubled up partand of man-marked, but it’s allthe game.’ The only blemish on Celtic’s league campaiGn was a draw at Inverness in September, a match in which his sixth consecutive domestic goal for the club in the wake of his £3.5m transfer. The champions return to the
That stage of my career was very tough but you need to go through periods like that
Caledonian Stadium this midweek less intent on settling a score so much as maintaining the momentum that made the title a formality before the turn of the year.
‘There are going to be times when you’re frustrated because we want to win every game we play in,’ admits Sinclair. ‘Their keeper made a few good saves that day but we should have had a few more goals.
‘We drew the game and we should have won it, but the main thing was we didn’t lose. We’re still going and, hopefully, we can stay on that run.’