Gustaf Lagerbielke has been speaking in Sweden about the start he has made to life at Celtic.
The 23-year-old has certainly been thrust right into the action in Scotland having made the switch from Elfsborg in the summer.
Lagerbielke was brought in as an immediate replacement for Carl Starfelt in August. It was probably hoped that he would be eased in with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Maik Nawrocki remaining our first-choice central defensive options.
Yet injuries to both, as well as Stephen Welsh and Yuki Kobayashi, meant Lagerbielke was in from the off, starting just days after signing against Kilmarnock.
He played seven games in a row for Celtic before missing the UEFA Champions League clash against Lazio after being sent off against Feyenoord. He was then completely left out of the squad for the win over Kilmarnock on Saturday, with Carter-Vickers, Liam Scales and Nat Phillips all ahead of him in the pecking order.
With Nawrocki and Welsh to come back, it is fair to say that there’s a slightly concerning picture forming for Lagerbielke. He could be our fifth or sixth-choice centre-back by the time everyone is fit. Yet, he’s still very positive about things.
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“I do not know,” he told Fotbollskanalen when asked why he has been left out recently.
“There have been many matches that I have had to play a lot. I think it’s about rotation and that we have a lot of centre-backs competing and that he wants to see everyone.
“I’ve had to play a lot and feel that it’s gone well, and that’s the most important thing. I am very happy with my first time at Celtic and I think it has gone very well. So it’s not something I’ve thought about or worried about.
“Everyone is very friendly and so is Rodgers. He has been very helpful and he is a good trainer.”
The centre-back situation was always going to be a difficult one for Celtic to address this summer. Given Starfelt’s departure and all of the subsequent injuries, we really needed to get bodies in the door.
Phillips almost certainly wouldn’t have been signed otherwise but we needed cover at that stage. Now, with Carter-Vickers back, and Scales emerging, we suddenly have enough options that Lagerbielke can’t even make the squad.
When Nawrocki returns the scene will become even more crowded. It’s something the club will surely have to address in January. Perhaps we could even see someone like Lagerbielke going out on loan for the second half of the season.
For what it’s worth, he’s not looked too bad so far. But there’s an argument that a loan move may do him a bit of good, especially if he’s just going to be on the bench or in the stand.
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