Carl Starfelt was back with a bang at Celtic Park on Thursday night – the Swede returning from injury early to replace Cameron Carter-Vickers who was out for personal reasons.
The defender has come under intense criticism from certain quarters of the Celtic support after his slow start but the player has been solid for quite some time now.
His performance against Hearts on Thursday cannot be denied and he might have turned even the most staunch of detractors.
The Swedish international was correctly awarded man of the match after a tough game.
?⚫️? Tonight's #cinchPrem Man of the Match…
? Carl Starfelt ?#cinchPrem | #CELHEA | #COYBIG ? pic.twitter.com/ksfFip22Fx
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) December 2, 2021
CP Hamill delivered these stats after the Hearts win.
Carl Starfelt vs Hearts:
95 passes complete (93% acc)
8/9 long balls complete
5 blocks
4/5 aerial duels won
2 tackles
1 interception
0 times dribbled past
Celtic fans have been gushing on social media over the returning star and have noted his improvement.
Starfelt has improved so much for us it's incredible
— Paul McGinley (@PaulMcG1994) December 2, 2021
Carl Starfelt is the best on earth.
— Ryan Fitzsimons (@RyanStevenF) December 2, 2021
Starfelt outstanding tonight. Unreal defensive performance??
— M (@Adelante2021) December 2, 2021
See when you let guys like Starfelt settle in properly then they show their worth, outstanding tonight and been good for a while
— Frank (@celticbhoy73) December 2, 2021
Carl’s return was very timely considering Cameron Carter Vickers had to sit this one out.
