Carl Starfelt got to play on the right-hand side of the Celtic defence in midweek as Cameron Carter-Vickers, suffering from the gruelling match at Hampden played in difficult conditions, was rested and new Bhoy Yuki Kobayashi made his debut. The Japanese defender is left footed, something that Celtic have lacked since the arrival of Ange Postecoglou and the right-footed Swede has played in that position despite toe obvious disadvantage for himself.
Starfelt was impressed by Kobayashi’s performance in his own usual spot in the team and welcomes the most recent central defensive signing to the team as competition for starting places increases.
“I thought he played really well, it was a good debut for him,” Starfelt said after the 4-0 win over St Mirren on Wednesday night, as reported by Glasgow Times. “He was cool on the ball and he won his duels. He was really good.
“Was it a welcome to Scotland? Yes. That is what a lot of the games are like here. It’s very physical. I think he did really well and he showed he can handle it. I didn’t give him too much advice, just the normal stuff like getting to know each other and knowing how close to be to each other to help each other out. He did very well.
“The competition for places is really good, it pushes everyone. It keeps everyone on their toes and on edge, while developing their games. The rest is up to the coach,” Starfelt added.
“I feel we are strong at the moment,” the Sweden international central defender added. “It was nice to get a clean sheet, especially for the defenders. But I feel we are strong and we have a lot of competition in the squad. It’s not easy for the coach, I guess, but that’s how it should be at a club like Celtic. We need to keep going. We have a lot to play for in the league so we need to be at it in every game.
“There is no time to relax. The competition makes it even more the case as you need to be at it in training. It’s a good thing. I don’t feel like we need extra motivation as everyone is at it anyway. We are ambitious, and we want to develop as a team. We need to be at it all the time. I feel we have a really strong squad and a lot of competition for places. I really feel we are in a good place to fight for all competitions.”
Next up for Celtic is the visit from Greenock Morton in the Scottish Cup in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off. And with the game being shown live on the BBC that and the early kicks-off time are usually indications of a lower than usual attendance, although those on the Home Cup Ticket Scheme will have already paid for their tickets.
Starfelt is certain that Celtic will not allow complacency to influence this match against lower league opponents who may well feature two former Celts, with both Eye Ambrose and Calvin Miller certain to get a warm welcome back to Paradise.
“No,” Starfelt said. “Because of the fact that it’s the cup and you only have one chance. If you have been in football for a while, you know anything can happen. It doesn’t really matter what league you come from. You really need to be focused and if you relax even 10 percent then anything can happen. That will be the message we get before the game and all of the players know it. I hope – no, I know – there is no risk of complacency.”
Starfelt’s record playing alongside Cameron Carter-Vickers is remarkable yet he’s still subjected to ongoing criticism, with a misplaced pass jumped on by the support. Anyone remember a former Swedish star playing for Celtic, when he made a mistake there would be grumbles in the stadium until this responsible realised who it was and there was instead this embarrassed confusion because the King of Kings could do no wrong.
