Olivier Ntcham is going to come to a point where he will really struggle to get back into the Celtic side. It looked like the loss to Livingston would present opportunities for some of the squad players, but a resounding victory over Ross County and the brilliant performance against Lazio have shown the central midfield roles belong to McGregor, Brown and Christie for now.
Broony is getting a bit older so you do have to wonder if he can consistently play on a Thursday and a Sunday. It seemed liked the Frenchman was going to miss the Lazio game in order to return against Aberdeen on Sunday.
That’s no longer the case after a report from The Daily Record confirmed he wouldn’t be in the squad for Sunday’s game. They suggest it’s an ankle injury that’s continuing to keep him out.
READ MORE: Predicted Pittodrie Line-up – Ntcham fails to recover, Johnston returns, Rogic to start
It’s horrible timing for the former Man City player, Christie is suspended for this one so it could’ve been a chance to try and make some sort of impact. It now seems most likely that Tom Rogic will play instead.
You really do start to wonder about his long term future. Of course the club shouldn’t be trying to push him out the door, but his antics in the summer do suggest another tantrum could be just around the corner.
He has played in 16 games this season, but only averages about 45 minutes a game so he might have to get used to trying to make an impact as a sub for a while longer.
As the season wears on, the squad will all need to contribute so Neil Lennon needs to find a way to accommodate Ntcham and give him enough playing time to keep him happy once he returns to fitness.
It’s hard to see where he might fit into the team just now, let’s just hope Lenny isn’t tempted to push Christie wider in an attempt to force everyone into the starting line up.
