FORMER Celtic striker Chris Sutton reckons that his old Parkhead team-mate Neil Lennon should drop captain Scott Brown and attacker Ryan Christie for Sunday's Scottish Cup final - as there are fringe platers who have impressed in recent weeks who are more deserving of a starting berth at Hampden.
Brown has had too settle for a spot on the bench for his side's last two games, with Ismaila Soro catching the eye at the base of midfield in his stead.
David Turnbull, too, has made a big impression since being thrown into the starting XI against Lille and Kilmarnock - leading Sutton to suggest that Christie and Brown may have to make way to accomodate the midfield pair.
He told the Daily Record: "Christie splits opinion a little bit among Celtic fans but he will always give you 100 per cent.
"But if you play Christie off the right hand side, it lets the opposition narrow up and defend the width of the penalty box.
"Therefore Frimpong would be the better option as a byline winger.
"He seems to be happier without the defensive responsibility so I think he has to start on the right.
"Elyounoussi has shown in flashes that he's a quality player, so unfortunately for Christie, I don't see him playing in any of the wide areas.
"And I don't think David Turnbull deserves to be dropped from the 10 role."
Sutton continued: "I don't agree with Neil and his assessment about being loyal. There's no room for sentiment in the Celtic team.
"It's about winning and building momentum so therefore you have to pick your strongest team.
"I'm a fan of [Tom] Rogic and Brown and in no way am I suggesting that Brown is finished.
"But what message does it send now when you go into a cup final, and you're not picking the players who deserve to be in the team on merit?
"Soro deserves to be in the team based on his last couple of performances and so does Turnbull."
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel