Sir Kenny Dalglish has warned that new Celtic signing Oliver Burke needs the switch to go according to plan at such at an important time in his career.
The 21-year-old has joined the Hoops on a loan deal from Championship side West Bromwich Albion, and Dalglish was quick to sing the youngster’s praises by claiming that he has “enormous” potential.
However, despite dishing out compliments to the January signing, the former Liverpool boss believes that the move needs to go smoothly for Burke in order for him to progress as a player.
“In the case of Burke, Celtic have signed a player with enormous potential, who offers flexibility in the forward areas of the pitch, whether he is wide right, coming in off the left or straight through the middle,” he said in his Sunday Post column.
“He now has to turn that optimism into something tangible. He is at a crossroads, and he needs this move to work out for him. This is a vital stage of his career. He has talent and now he needs to show it on a regular basis.
“We all know that Oliver has pace to burn, and has a fine physical presence. Pace is a terrific asset to have, but you also need your head to work at the same pace as your legs. That’s the challenging part.
“If it does go well for Oliver at Celtic – and I think that it will – then that’s also good news for Alex McLeish and the Scotland squad.”
OPINION
Burke is no doubt a decent signing for Celtic, but Dalglish is right – he does need this move to work out for him, especially as he is now 21 and is in a vital stage of his career. He will need to earn his place in the starting XI though, as the Hoops already have the likes of James Forrest, Scott Sinclair and Ryan Christie all in great form at the moment. However, there is no harm in trying to get into the line-up ahead of these three players. Burke no doubt has the ability to be a fantastic player, and he now has the opportunity to unleash that talent at a great club. Sitting on the bench is the worst thing that could happen for him at the moment, so every opportunity he is presented with, he must grasp it firmly with both hands. It will be exciting to see how Burke gets on this season – and whether he can make a difference to Celtic’s title hopes.