CARL STARFELT was called up to the Sweden squad this international break and while the Celtic defender is in the pool of players for his country – he didn’t make it into the matchday squad against Kosovo.
The Swede’s won 3-0 in the end in a pretty routine victory for the country.
Carl would have saw the game as an ideal opportunity to show his ability against lesser opposition but the manager opted not just to omit him from the starting XI but the squad entirely.
That would have hurt Starfelt’s confidence and the explanation behind why the defender wasn’t selected won’t fill him with much hope of getting game time for his country.
As cited by FotbolSkanalen, Janne Andersson said “What made me choose Alex before Carl is his main game status. If I had chosen a player from the start based on their entrance to the squad, Starfelt would have played.
“But when it came to the question of having a centre-back on the bench, I felt that Milosevic is very good on his head if we were to come under pressure towards the end or had to chase a goal.”
Carl is not a commanding centre-back and was brought in for his ball playing skills and can be solid when in ground duels.
The Swede has looked uncomfortable at times in Ange’s system but the criticism he has received has been well out of hand. The fans do pick the players they’re going to ride from an early point in the season and after a couple of high profile mistakes at the beginning of Carl’s Celtic career – according to some Celtic fans – he can’t do anything right.
Hopefully the centre-back uses the snub as fuel to show why he should be a fixture in the starting XI come November’s break.
