Celtic’s pre-season tour in America saw Brendan Rodgers give valuable game time to his senior players who will kick off their league season next weekend as well as the club’s promising young talents.
Manager Brendan Rodgers took this opportunity to give several younger players crucial playing time against high-calibre opposition and they performed reasonably well in their limited minutes.
Brendan Rodgers was particularly impressed by two young talents, Francis Turley and Colby Donovan, who he says will continue their development in Scotland. Whether this will be with the B Team, with the senior side or out on loan, he didn’t detail.
“The senior guys have done so well,” Rodgers told RecordSport.
“We’ve seen some of the younger guys, players like Francis Turley, who has come into games and really come to note over the course of the pre-season period.
“With time and development he can be an excellent footballer. He’s got a good idea of the game, he’s technically good, he can be very strong. We just need to wait for the maturation with him, he’s only 18 years old, but I’ve liked what I’ve seen from the young players.
“Colby Donovan has come in, he was up against Raheem Sterling the other night so will have learned from that.
“It’s always important for talents to be encouraged, and that was the whole idea behind taking them to America.
“They can gain a lot from being around their role models, the senior players, and they will have learned a lot from the trip. We’ll continue their development in Scotland.”
As the Lowland League, where they’ll likely go for now, kicks off and Celtic’s pre-season in America concludes, Rodgers is keen on continuing the development of these young talents back in Scotland. The exposure and lessons they’ve gained from playing alongside and against some of the best in the sport could be instrumental in their continued growth and integration into the main squad.
I hope the name checks are not a prelude to disappointment in the transfer market. I believe those coming through the ranks should be given more time in the first team for further development within our league but we need proven experience within the team to play in the champions league. Time is marching on and our expectations are being stretched to the limit. No surprises there with the same men in suits left to deliver class players. We live in hope.