Celtic flop Carlton Cole has slammed Ronny Deila after a disagreement that led to the striker leaving the club.
Cole was a bizarre signing that didn’t work out. Arriving at Parkhead in the October of 2015, his only goal came against Stranraer in the Scottish Cup. It’s safe to say Leigh Griffiths outshone the former West Ham player, netting the ball forty times during the same campaign.
Cole was released by Celtic the following summer. He blames a “disagreement” between himself and Ronny Deila for his Celtic career not going according to plan. [Sportsman]
“The manager at the time was Ronny Deila.
“He wanted me to play a certain way. He wanted me to run the channels more. You know what, I can’t play like that now, I’m a target man.
“All you need to get is Leigh Griffiths off of me. You won’t see the best of me on the wings. You’ll only see the best of me in the 18-yard box.
“So we had a bit of a disagreement and that didn’t bode well. He didn’t want to play me as much.
“He was saying I wasn’t fit enough. How am I supposed to get fit If I don’t play matches?
“I played about five reserve games and he still thought I wasn’t fit. Reserve games are not the same as first-team games. It’s a different level.
“I need to play more first-team games, give me 25 minutes here and there. I’ll get back up to speed but he just didn’t want to do this. He’s finding excuses.
“So I’ve got no bitterness towards him or his staff or anything like that. But at the time, it was a bit disorganised.”
Cole Can’t Blame Deila
When you look at his Celtic record, it’s hard to push the blame onto the boss. One goal in five games doesn’t merit a start, especially when Griffiths is scoring for fun.
Deila wasn’t willing to change things when they were working well, so if Carlton wanted the game time he desired, he would have to shine when he was given a chance to, even if he didn’t play in his preferred position.
Carlton Cole Hits Out at Ronald Deila.