OPINION
Magic man? More like the nearly man.
Brendan Rodgers may have hyped Tom Rogic way beyond his actual level last year but Willie Wallace was not for one minute fooled, and neither should we be.
The pundit and Lisbon Lion, who won five league titles at Celtic in the nine-in-a-row run under Jock Stein, has given a no-holds-barred assessment of the Australian attacking midfielder.
“Tom Rogic? I have watched him a long time and I’d beat him in a race – even today,” said Wallace, as quoted by the Scottish Sun.
“Rogic’s a good enough player, but put him out there when he has to look at the big picture? He’s not at the races.”
Back in April 2017 as Celtic were on the verge of the first of their two trebles and crushing all and sundry, Rodgers positively drooled over Rogic as he returned from an injury.
“The Magic Man is back,” gushed Rodgers. “What a player. He’s an amazing player and can grow into one of the top midfield players in Europe. That’s what he can develop into as there’s no doubt he’s top class.
“Top players know where there space is and he’s as good as any I’ve seen at finding space.”
It appeared at the time to be a ludicrous over-hyping of a decent but far from brilliant player. Surely even Brendan couldn’t have believed Rogic could be one of the best in Europe?
Eighteen months later, that comment looks a bit embarrassing for Rodgers.
The 25-year-old has certainly had magic Celtic moments, scoring some crucial goals, including some outstanding ones.
But it is a measure of his standing that he is far from a nailed-on starter for the Hoops, with his 2018-19 contribution amounting to two goals and three assists from 14 matches.
For a playmaker in the dominant Scottish team in a league not quite as strong as the English Championship, Rogic is barely pulling his weight.
As for being one of the best on the Continent, no, Brendan, far from it.