Carl Starfelt on Tynecastle today and the Kyogo comparisons to Henrik Larsson

Carl Starfelt reckons Celtic are on the verge of achieving something very special this season and a big step along the road to glory will be achieved this afternoon with a win against Hearts at Tynecastle which will see the Hoops crowned Scottish Champions on Coronation weekend.

The Sweden International defender will be without his usual partner Cameron Carter-Vickers this afternoon and indeed for the rest of this season as the American international centre-back called time on his season after last Sunday’s Scottish Cup semi-final win against theRangers in order to have much needed surgery on his troublesome knee issue that has bothered him for several months now.

That means that Starfelt will move to the right hand side of the central defence today and will be partnered by Japanese defender Yuki Kobayashi.

Starfelt appreciates what is at stake this afternoon and we can expect a determined Celtic side putting in a performance that will set off a huge party later this afternoon back at Celtic Park.

“We have done well but it is important now that we finish the season the right way, Carl Starfelt said, as reported by Glasgow Times. “We have it all in our own hands to make this season a truly great way so it is all about staying focussed and keeping on going right until the end because it cannot be over for us until then.

“Our focus is on Sunday which is a huge game for us. We go to Tynecastle with the chance to seal the league title, which would be fantastic. It is tidy ground because it is always pretty loud and a little bit hostile. There can be some pressure on you when you play at Tynecastle so you need to be prepared for that.

“As a player you can enjoy these ones and because of that you look forward to them. We were really good there in the Scottish Cup quarter-final a few weeks ago but this is a new challenge.

“They have a new man in charge who has them playing a different way. As always our focus has to be on the football we want to play,” Starfelt stated.

Asked about comparisons that are beginning to be made between Celtic’s top scorer Kyogo and Starfelt’s fellow countryman Henrik Larsson, the big defender was perfectly diplomatic in the way he responded.

“Kyogo has been outstanding for us this season,” Starfelt said. “He was really good last season as well but now it feels like he is only getting better and better. He is working so hard as well. We are happy to see him get his rewards in terms of the goals because he also works extremely hard defensively. He is a really good player and I have no doubt he will keep scoring goals.

“It is hard to make a fair comparison because Larsson was here for a very long time and is a club legend but I can see why people do because they are both very good players. Larsson was outstanding for Sweden and won the Champions League as well so he is a legend back home too.

“Kyogo’s potential is very high so we will see at the end of his career how well he did.”