Manager Speaks Out Over Luca Connell Issue

Republic of Ireland under-21 manager Jim Crawford has highlighted Luca Connell’s Celtic struggles and believes the player must look to get game time over the next 18 months to progress as a player.

The under-21 boss cites in-house matches not being a substitute for competitive ties.

“It is a fair thing to say (Connell’s career has taken a bump). I know Luca from my time as under-18 manager and he’s a player with really good potential. He was on the crest of wave playing first-team games at Bolton, rightly attracting a lot of interest.” Crawford told the Irish Times.

“He went to Celtic and had a couple of injuries. They weren’t playing too many games at under-21 level, instead arranging in-house matches. At his age, it’s vital to be playing competitive games, whether that’s under-23s with your club in the UK or first-team games out on loan.

“It’s huge because you need to be challenged. He made his debut for Queen’s Park on Saturday and this international on Friday will get another few minutes under his belt to help for the rest of the season. I think we’ve a lot more to see from Luca.”

Luca has done the right thing by taking a short term loan to Queens Park.

The midfielder has dropped down the divisions and is now helping the club push for promotion. He was rewarded for that decision when a man of the match award in his first game for Queens Park won him a recall to the Irish setup.

Luca has so much potential but Neil Lennon had very little interest in developing the Irishman by bringing him into the first team. Some might say he’s not good enough but you have to remember, under Neil Lennon, Callum McGregor was nearly sold for pennies.

We need a manager who recognises young talent and can bring them on, not ones who keep trusting the same old players when things go wrong.