ANGE POSTECOGLOU made a mistake when Celtic played their last dead rubber tie in Europe last season. With nothing real at stake in the Bernabeu, Ange must ensure he doesn’t fall into last year’s trap
Last year, against Real Betis, Kyogo had his injury concerns, yet he still replaced Albian Ajeti after he was forced off injured early on. The Japanese striker went on to worsen things and spent months on the sidelines after the match with a hamstring injury. If you remember, Kyogo was briefly brought back, not fully fit for the League Cup final and won Celtic the game before going out injured for another considerable period.
Carl Starfelt is returning from a muscle injury and wasn’t deemed fit enough to make the squad on Sunday. But with Carter-Vickers’ injury, Postecoglou may feel inclined to turn to the Swedish defender.
However, the manager must not do this in Madrid if there are any questions over Carl’s fitness. Starfelt and Carter-Vickers injured at the same time could really damage the Hoops’ defence and isn’t worth the risk at all.
The focus should be to ease Starfelt back into the squad and reduce the chances of picking up an injury.
As for who should start beside Jenz, the safest option would be Abildgaard for me. He’s had some experience playing in the backline and is the only person that’s fully fit and capable of playing in the backline.
