With all the reaction from the match against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night focussing mainly on Matt O’Riley – rightfully so might I add – it’s remiss not to include the wonderful Luis Palma in that praise too. The Honduran was superb in holding the ball up and winning fouls; picking the correct moments when to release the ball and when to hold onto it against an overly enthusiastic side.
His contribution against Lazio nearly won us the game had it not been for that most unfortunate of touches from Daizen Maeda, which stopped the referee from giving the goal as VAR intervened (again) and dashed our euphoria on Matchday Two. In spite of this though, Palma has dusted himself down and has subsequently had terrific matches both domestically and in Europe.
His performance against Hearts was class and if that wasn’t enough, his display against Diego Simeone and his side was almost flawless. That goal was something we’ve been crying out for now for a considerable amount of time – someone who can strike the ball nice, cleanly and powerfully. The strike was so sweet and connected fantastically well with the winger’s boot. Straight and true right into that Atletico goalmouth. They looked stunned when we went 2-1 up.
It was dreadfully unfortunate for the wide-man when Brendan Rodgers decided to change the formation and give us more protection from those sneaky, early crosses – like the one that led to Alvaro Morata’s goal to make it 2-2 on the night – and the Honduran international was hooked simply for tactical reasons. It felt like he could do more damage to an Atleti side that didn’t know what had hit them when we started to turn the screw.
In a handful of appearances, Luis Palma has shown that he has the quality and ability to help bridge the gap of the void that Jota left behind when he upped sticks to Saudi Arabia with Celtic receiving a £25million transfer fee. His goal contributions have calmed any fears that he might not be able to cut it at Celtic Park, as there remains lingering doubts over some of his comrades who were signed during the previous summer transfer window.
Palma looks like he could be the next ‘superstar’ at Celtic Park and hitting a goal in the UEFA Champions League group stages has proved he has the right stuff to make it here. Under Brendan Rodgers, he has the potential to really kick-on and develop into a top-class operator at European level. Hopefully nights like Wednesday against Ateltico give him the courage and belief to use that platform to the betterment of both Celtic and himself.
I can’t wait for what’s to come from this bhoy.
Paul Gillespie
