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John Hartson urges Celtic duo to quit this summer for sake of their own careers
Ryan McDonald
3 – 4 minutes
Hoops legend Hartson reckons the writing is on the wall for two of Brendan Rodgers’ squad players
Celtic legend John Hartson
Celtic legend John Hartson(Image: SNS Group)
John Hartson has urged two Celtic outcasts to relaunch their careers elsewhere this summer.
Out-of-favour defenders Stephen Welsh and Maik Nawrocki have fallen well down the pecking order at Parkhead this season.
Homegrown stopper Welsh, 25, made just two appearances before being shipped out on loan to Belgian outfit Mechelen in January, where he has since played regularly.
Polish centre-back Nawrocki was brought out of cold storage to solve an injury crisis against Rangers last month and impressed despite Celts falling to a 3-2 defeat.
The 24-year-old – a £4.3million arrival from Legia Warsaw last season – kept his place in the team the following week against Hearts before falling out of the picture again.
Left-sided defenders Liam Scales and Auston Trusty are now battling for a start alongside first-choice Cameron Carter-Vickers as the campaign reaches its climax.
And Hartson believes the writing is on the wall for fringe duo Welsh and Nawrocki, advising the pair to move on for their own good.
Maik Nawrocki, right, has fallen out of the picture again at Celtic
Maik Nawrocki, right, has fallen out of the picture again at Celtic(Image: SNS Group)
He told Go Radio: “Welsh, I think is up against it, because of some of the other centre-backs. Trusty seems to be the one that’s out of the team, at the minute.
“Then, Scales is the one who has come back in. Sometimes, you can have a bad two or three games. Another player comes in, and he stays in for a while, then he has a bad game, and they change it again.
“But the good thing for Celtic is that they have two or three options for every position that they can mix the team up quite regularly.
“For me, the ones who are on the fringes, and aren’t playing every single weekend, don’t ever look like they are ever going to be regulars. You have got to look to move them on. Not just for Celtic, but for their careers as well.”
When it was put to Hartson that Nawrocki didn’t look out of place against Rangers, the Welshman added: “Absolutely not, he came in and I think he has played one game since that.
“It’s about playing, being involved and making an impact on the team, in some way or another. If I am out in the cold. I want to go. Why would I want to stay somewhere where I am not playing every week?”
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