Brendan Rodgers has reassured Celtic supporters that Paulo Bernardo will have an important role to play in the coming weeks, despite his limited minutes so far this season.

The Portuguese midfielder, who joined permanently last summer after a loan spell, has found himself largely restricted to appearances from the bench.

Even with Reo Hatate sidelined against Hibernian last weekend and Benjamin Nygren dropping out of the side, Bernardo was not called into the starting XI, sparking frustration among fans who are eager to see more of him.

Rodgers, however, insists the 23-year-old’s time will come.

“Paulo will be in the squad,” said the Celtic boss on Celtic TV. “He’s done very well since he’s been here. Maybe not played as much as what he would have liked. Last year, he had a lot of injuries that kept him out and probably didn’t quite have his rhythm.

“But he’s come back in the summer, worked very, very hard. Obviously, there have been one or two other players that have been in front of him, but he’s fighting now for his place. Now he’s up fully in his fitness level, so I expect him to play some part tomorrow.”

Bernardo is expected to feature against Braga in the Europa League, as Celtic look to build on their hard-fought opening draw away to Red Star Belgrade. With fixture congestion mounting, Rodgers’ words suggest the midfielder’s opportunity to establish himself is closer than ever.

It will be good to see more of the player, who clearly possesses quality. Before joining the Hoops, he had featured in the Champions League for Benfica and was a regular in the Under-21 National side, which he went on to captain while at Celtic.

He is quite far down the pecking order, with Engels and McCowan ahead of him, but he will be looking to impress in the chances he gets.