Celtic manager Martin O’Neill has warned his new arrivals that the Scottish Premiership is a tough league to play in…
Celtic have been flawless domestically, but faced a tough challenge after going a goal behind against St Mirren in Paisley on Saturday evening.
Indeed it was the first time the Scottish Champions had fallen behind in a league fixture since the dramatic league title win over Hearts on the premiership conclusion last May.
It takes a certain mental toughness as well as ability to fight back in the Scottish top flight, especially in away fixtures, and the Irishman seen his side show those characteristics in Paisley, something that the players will need to consistently show if they want to retain their title.
Martin has pointed that out to a couple of his new arrivals those being Mika Baur and Shim Mheuka.
Baur has looked calm and assured in his few appearances so far, but his manager has had to warn him of the hard life can be in the Scottish Premiership, especially in away fixtures.
Martin also warned late-window Chelsea loan addition Shim Mheuka of the strength of the league. The 18 year old showed his eye for goal as he found the back of the net in Paisley, only for the goal to be ruled out by VAR.
When asked at last night’s post-match media conference about Mheuka’s impact, O’Neill responded: “He could be a proper player in time. He could be. I could see him starting, very easily. This is the whole point, we’ve got a couple of players that deep down you don’t really know exactly what they can do. Of course we’ve studied them, we’ve got their things and they’re coming in.
“But until they’re throwing into these games, I was speaking to wee Mika Baur afterwards, I said, ‘Mika, these games are hard.’ He’s played in the Bundesliga second division, he just got into the big league. The games are hard here. Sometimes they don’t realise how hard they are. But big Shim looks as if he wants to adjust to it.”
Just an Ordinary Bhoy
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1 Comment
You are spot on, with the mental toughness that is required to play within the SPFL?
Obviously the quality factor takes preference within our club, especially with European football in mind?
Yet it’s often overlooked, upon the amount of challenges that are involved, within such a small league as the SPFL offers?
Between the differences in surfaces, and how teams set up. Using cheating mibs to fall over to win free kicks, and facing the over aggressive physical approach, allowed upon our players etc etc.
Then a vast amount of match differences involved within the SPFL alone, without the differences involved within European football, added into the equation?
So the player profile we do require, goes way beyond the quality factor, when players have to be able to adapt to the differences involved, upon a match by match basis?
And there’s potentially no bigger differences involved within football, than what our players are going to be facing, starting next weekend, and the 3 matches involved in that week alone?
Can make or break players and management within our club, where judgement upon those involved will be at it’s highest?
And yet somehow, we will continue to bring board members into such an equation?
Don’t get that whatsoever still, especially as it’s down to the player’s to find the mental toughness with the quality factor, to overcome such weeks involved, with the demands within our club?
Of course that adaption and mental toughness adds another dimension, to a player within his career, if successful. Hence as to why our player trading model can be so successful imo?
And the quality factor within them, will determine by just how much money is involved upon them moving on?
Possibly a factor that’s overlooked to much within our incoming players imo?
To much of the quality factor been placed upon the asking price upon player’s imo?
So to tackle the adaption and mental toughness required within a player within our club. They potentially really want to play for ourselves, in order to succeed imo?
We finally got that at the end of last season within our players?
But it was missing badly, for huge chunks of last season beforehand?
Therefore, still believe MoN was looking for such elements within his decision making taken upon incoming players imo?
Next week could give us the answer as to whether he was correct or not, with potentially a bigger factor placed upon the quality factor involved within them?
Personally believe MoN is correct, with the theory of not having the right mentality, can you really deliver the quality factor?