Celtic defender Greg Taylor has stated that the return of David Turnbull is a ‘big boost’ for Ange Postecoglou’s side.
The midfielder made his first appearance since picking up a serious hamstring injury back in December, during Saturday’s 3-0 win over Ross County, and has come back at an ideal point in the season.
As quoted by Football Scotland, Taylor was delighted to see the return of Turnbull to action after his long-term absence as the Celtic squad now looks to be nearing closer to full strength in the coming weeks.
“It’s another big boost to have David back,” he explained.
“He’s a goal threat from midfield. We’re incredibly strong in there, but that’s what you want because it brings everyone up to a better level.
“Hopefully, David can go on and contribute the way he was at the start of the season.
“It’s been a long hard road, but I’m sure having a full Celtic Park to come back to, that’s why you do the work in your rehab.
“I was really pleased for him as all the lads were. It was a nice game for him to come on.”
He Continued, “We’ve not had it easy along the way,” Taylor said. “A lot of us have had quite long-term injuries, and it was good to see David back out there.
“I think certainly injuries-wise, we’ve almost got the majority of boys back. You want that; you want your strength in depth because everyone is going to be called upon.
“The gaffer’s a big one for the work throughout the week is the reason we perform how we do on the weekend.
“As long as we can keep the training standards high, that’ll be important until the end of the season.
“Everyone has contributed throughout the season, however many bodies we’ve used.
“That’ll be the same until the end of the season. Definitely. Some boys might not be called upon in terms of pitch time.
“But, equally, you can’t discount how important they are when they train the way they do. It keeps the levels high throughout the week.
“It’s definitely down to the manager and his philosophy. We’ve not looked for excuses throughout when anyone has been injured.
“It’s just another hurdle to jump over, and we’re aiming to do that until the end of the season.”
As Taylor mentions, Postecoglou and his squad haven’t had much luck in terms of injuries throughout the campaign, with players such as Turnbull, Callum McGregor and Kyogo Furuhashi, to name a few, picking up knocks.
Despite that, the squad have continued to fight through, though, and now find themselves in the ideal position heading into the final fixtures of the season.
With Turnbull playing such a big part in opening half of the season, it gives Postecoglou even more strength and depth to work with in the midfield area as we prepare for the final run-in.
