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Brendan Rodgers says he’s been impressed with 24-year-old Celtic player in training recently
The return of Mikey Johnston at Celtic was one borne out of necessity rather than the player deserving a chance.
That’s likely to be the opinion of most Celtic fans on the Hoops winger. Because let’s be honest, if Liel Abada and Daizen Maeda were not injured, the 24-year-old would be kicking his heels on the sidelines behind Hyunjun Yang and Luis Palma in the pecking order.
Johnston has been at Celtic for eight seasons now and during that time he has failed to become an established first-team regular.
However, the recent injury list and the drop in form of Yang has meant that the Republic of Ireland winger is now front and centre for a start against Hibs tomorrow night after impressing at St Johnstone on Sunday.
But it wasn’t just at McDiarmid Park that Johnstone caught the eye of Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager revealed that he’s also been doing it at training and shared the targets he set Johnston at the start of the season.
Mikey Johnston impresses the Celtic manager in training
The first step for Johnston was to get fit. Rodgers commented that he needed to sort that issue out as he has spent a fair chunk of his career on the treatment table at Celtic.
Rodgers said [], “The first thing I said to Mikey Johnston in the summer was, ‘You’ve got to show you’re fit’.
“He’s at the age where clearly he wants to play.
“But he was injured a lot, so he had to show that robustness. He’s done that.
“Mikey’s virtually always been available and he’s trained really hard. He looks more robust in his body now.”
Brendan Rodgers sets Mikey Johnston a huge Celtic challenge
The Celtic manager, now happy that Johnston has proven his fitness, said the winger had to go further to make it at Celtic.
Pleased about the Irish winger’s ability to beat his opponent on the wing, Rodgers wants more and set Johnston a second challenge at Celtic.
Rodgers continued, “The second thing I wanted to see was if he could tactically participate in the game. That’s the big challenge for him because in a one v one duel, he’s outstanding.
“Mikey can beat a man but football’s more than that. You have to be able to press the game, be synchronised with your team.
“Certainly, he’s shown he can come into a game and make a great impact. Mikey’s impact on Sunday was transformative for the team.
“Hopefully now he can show himself at 24 because he’s not a young player anymore. I gave him his debut at 18.
“If he can show he’s able to participate in the game then he can have a really bright next decade.”
Mikey Johnston’s future at Celtic
Well, in truth, it’s really down to the winger where his career goes at Celtic. If he knuckles down and continues to work hard, there’s really no reason why he can’t follow in the footsteps of Liam Scales.
His Republic of Ireland teammate has shown that if you grab your opportunity at Celtic, you will get your place in the first team.
However, as mentioned before, Johnston is set to come up against the likes of Maeda and Abada soon. Does he have the necessary quality to oust one or both?
Only time will tell but I genuinely can’t see it.
In other news, Gustaf Lagerbielke opens up on being frozen out at Celtic