Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that Celtic are in talks with the Australian football chiefs in the hope of persuading them to allow star man, Tom Rogic, to play in the Derby fixture versus Rangers on December 29th.
The ‘Wizard of Oz’ has been called up to feature in the Asia Cup which means that he will be required to fly out with the Australian squad on the 27th, meaning that midfielder would miss the visit to Ibrox, which could have serious implications for the league table.
Rodgers expressed his annoyance at the Australian decision but stated that talks were ongoing to free Rogic up to play in the Glasgow Derby match.
“At this moment in time he is due to play his last game for us away at Aberdeen and then he is due to fly out to meet up with the Australia squad on the 27th”
“It’s not something we are overly happy about. We want to work and build relationships with federations – and I spoke with Graham Arnold, here – but you do that through working together on what is best for each player.
“We feel Tom can play and be available for the 29th and fly out after the game and meet up with the squad on the morning of the 30th and still be there virtually a week before he is due to play his first game.
“Tom wants to play in the game but he also wants to play for Australia and it’s a position I don’t think the player needs to be in.”
Hopefully the midfielder will receive clearance to play for Celtic in such a crucial game as we will need our best players if we are to get a result in a hostile atmosphere, especially given just 750 Celtic fans will be there.
