Chris Sutton was drooling over Ryan Christie after the fringe player proved crucial to Celtic’s 3-0 win against Hearts on Sunday.
The Hoops booked their spot in the BetFred Cup final by winning at Murrayfield, but it could have been a different result if Christie did not come off the bench at half-time to replace the injured Olivier Ntcham.
The 23-year-old won the Bhoys a penalty, which was converted by Scott Sinclair, before scoring a beautiful goal from outside of the area to round off a comprehensive win.
Sutton was loving Christie’s display and believes that their win in Edingburgh means that they are still within a shout of winning a third treble in a row.
“Celtic at the treble still going for the treble. Christie outstanding took his chance,” he said via his personal Twitter account in instant reaction to the result on Sunday afternoon.
.@btsportfootball Celtic at the treble still going for the treble ??? Christie outstanding took his chance ?????? 3-0
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) October 28, 2018
OPINION
Christie turned the game on it’s head when he came on. The former Inverness attacker has hardly been used by Brendan Rodgers since he has been in charge at Parkhead, but if he is able to play like the way he did in the second-half against Hearts, then fans can expect to see a lot more of the Scotland international in the coming weeks. Before Sunday, Christie had made just 10 appearances across all competitions for the Hoops and had not scored or assisted a single goal. In fairness, he has only started the two games, but he should be in the starting line-up against Dundee on Wednesday if he is able to play like that. Celtic were poor in the first-half and Hearts did well to hold them off. But Christie’s inclusion, as well as Scott Sinclair’s won the game and Rodgers has to acknowledge that when it comes to his upcoming team selections.