Since joining Celtic in June, Brendan Rodgers has brought on eight new teammates. With the exception of one, almost all of them have debuted at some point.
Young Australian Marco Tilio, Rodgers’ second summer acquisition, has not played for the Hoops in a competitive match due to injury.
However, that injury cleared up towards the end of September and almost four weeks later, the £1.5m signing from Melbourne City (which is a record fee ever received by an Australian club) is still nowhere to be seen.
And here, Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers, explains why.
Rodgers said [Keep Up], “It’s just time. He will admit it himself, it’s been a really, really hard transition for him.
“It’s always difficult, you are a new player coming into a club and you end up being injured virtually all of pre-season and into September.
“He has started to find his feet in the last three or four weeks. It’s going to take him more time but I am not in any big rush for Marco. He will bring himself to the team as quickly as he can produce in training and over his time here.
“He is adapting but it’s taking a wee bit longer for him just purely because the intensity of the game is totally different to where he has come from.”
When could the Celtic fans see Marco Tilio?
Well, for a start, it won’t be this week. With Atletico Madrid on Wednesday being followed up with a tough away trip to Easter Road, Tilio will be shielded from these high-pressure fixtures.
I understand that all fixtures at Celtic are pressurised as the fans demand to see winning football but there are games in the calendar that are best suited to bedding young players in.
Against St Mirren at Celtic Park on the 1st of November could be ideal for a substitute appearance if the team are ahead and cruising at home.
Or against Ross County away on the 4th of November. An outing against the SPFL strugglers could be the ideal fixture to give Tilio his debut.
Aberdeen at Celtic Park beckons on the 12th of November and it’s just before the international break. A game against Barry Robson’s side is always a challenge but, again, a substitute appearance could be ideal to break him in.
The ‘exciting’ young Australian player is well-regarded in his own country, so Celtic supporters will be interested to see how he performs in a Brendan Rodgers team that is on the rise.
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