Brendan Rodgers has a few big calls to make ahead of Celtic’s clash against Aberdeen.
Celtic outclassed Ross County on Saturday and the so-called bench players proved their worth by putting in numerous high-quality displays.
It’s a headache for the manager, but a much-needed one because he has so much quality to pick from.
Rodgers made six changes from Celtic’s 1-1 draw against Club Brugge in midweek, yet by the half-time break at the weekend, the champions were 5-0 up and heading towards a cricket score.
The opposition were lucky that the home side took their foot off the gas, or else, it could have been very, very ugly for them.
Four of the players who came into the XI scored, Liam Scales, Luke McCowan, Paulo Bernardo and Adam Idah.
And Barry Ferguson feels the new boy in Celtic’s squad is knocking the door down.
Barry Ferguson says Luke McCowan is ‘putting a case’ forward to start for Celtic at Aberdeen
Celtic are four points clear of Aberdeen – with a game in hand – ahead of the Wednesday night meeting at Pittodrie.
Everyone knows Callum McGregor will start and Reo Hatate, it’s just a case of whether or not you keep McCowan in the XI for the much-talked-about Arne Engels.
Ferguson hailed McCowan for how he has started life at Parkhead following his move from Dundee and that he ‘certainly has got the quality’ to start against Aberdeen, as he told Go Radio.
The squad Celtic are carrying, it doesn’t make much of a difference when you make six changes,” said Ferguson. “That’s a lot of changes, but it just keeps running smoothly and it just shows you the quality and depth he has coming in for Hatate and Engels. It’s still high-quality players that are coming to replace them.
“One thing you have to give him (McCowan) credit for is that it would have been easy for him to come from Dundee and to go to Celtic and say to yourself, ‘right, I am just happy to sit on the bench and get a few minutes here and there’.
“When he gets an opportunity, he is actually putting a case ‘I want to be in the starting XI’ and he certainly got the quality. There is no doubt. You saw that last season. You are playing with a better standard of player. I always believe it brings your game up a notch or two.
McCowan’s stats for Celtic
It needs to be noted that the 26-year-old wasn’t at Celtic in the summer, in regards to getting a pre-season under his belt or getting used to his new surroundings.
He was still being professional and putting in the work for Dundee – playing eight matches in all competitions, scoring three goals and supplying six assists.
McCowan has come in from the cold, settled in like he has been here for years and has already become a crowd favourite.
