Martin O’Neill has confirmed that young striker Callum Osmand suffered a hamstring injury during Celtic’s 3-1 loss to Midtjylland in the Europa League.
Osmand’s setback comes at a time when he was beginning to establish himself in the first team, having made a strong impression with energetic displays against Falkirk and Rangers. His recent form had been one of the brighter stories in O’Neill’s short tenure so far, but the injury now looks set to halt his progress for several weeks.
Speaking after the match, O’Neill revealed that Osmand was visibly upset after coming off, with the young forward fearing a serious problem. The Irishman, however, offered reassurance and urged patience, insisting the injury would not derail his long-term development.
He said: (TCW), “Yeah, he’s pulled the hamstring and that’s something that obviously, he’s very young, it’s never happened to him before, so he doesn’t know and yeah, he was distraught because I think the reason being he was just trying to get his career going.
“But if everything looks out well, he’ll recover from that and then start again. That’s what I’ve said to him, don’t do this.
“You will certainly get going, this is just a setback for you but it’s not terminal in that sense and you can fight back, you’ll be out for X number of weeks now.
“It is a shame because he was trying to make an impression but that’s it.”
O’Neill’s reaction showed how disappointing it was to see a young player get injured just as he was starting to make an impact. Osmand’s energy and confidence had given Celtic a real boost in recent games, and supporters were beginning to take notice of his potential.
The Irishman will be hoping the injury isn’t too serious, with Celtic’s medical staff set to find out more about the extent of the hamstring problem in the coming days.
It’s a setback not only for Osmand but also for O’Neill, who has relied on the teenager’s enthusiasm to lift the team in recent weeks.
Celtic are back at Celtic Park on Sunday to face Kilmarnock, and while attention will now turn to that match, O’Neill will know this injury has come at a bad time for one of the club’s brightest young players.
