As Celtic gears up to face Livingston this Sunday, the end of the international break brings a mixed bag of feelings for manager Brendan Rodgers.
While he’s buoyed by his squad’s return without any new injuries, there’s a palpable sense of frustration over how Greg Taylor and Anthony Ralston were utilised—or, more accurately, not utilised—by Scotland manager Steve Clarke during the break.
Taylor found himself benched for both matches against the Netherlands and Northern Ireland, while Ralston played only a minor role, overshadowed by Nathan Patterson’s selection as the preferred right wingback.
This decision has sparked debate, particularly after Patterson’s performance against the Irish, which included a costly mistake directly leading to the only goal of the match.
Peter Grant expressed his view on The Go Radio Football Show, spotlighting Ralston’s defensive quality over Patterson’s and advocating for Ralston’s inclusion in future line-ups, over the former Ibrox stars.
He said: “I think Tony Ralston, you need competitors, you need people to go and run, people who can defend, I think he’s a better defender than Patterson.
“Better defender, but Patterson is probably better going the opposite way. And that’s the only question mark I would have between the two on who would go [to the Euros] as well or would he take both even though Hickey is there.”
