Celtic fans have taken to Twitter to praise Hatem Abd Elhamed for his performance in the first half of their Old Firm clash with Rangers.
The Israeli defender was appearing in his first Glasgow derby, and gave a fantastic account of himself in the opening half.
Brave and committed throughout, he put in a last ditch challenge on Joe Aribo in the ninth minute to prevent his side from going one down against their bitter rivals.
A painful clash of heads a few minutes later showed that the 28-year-old is willing to put his body on the line for the cause, and his display at right back was energetic and defensively assured from the get-go.
Here are some of the best tweets from Celtic fans.
https://twitter.com/kaylamcintoshxo/status/1168119057121533953?s=20
Elhamed masterclass
— Marcus (@marcus67_) September 1, 2019
Elhamed was touch and go for this game, with Neil Lennon confirming earlier in the week that is suffering from a hairline fracture, as reported by the Scottish Sun.
He missed both games against AIK in the Europa League, and has managed just the four appearances since joining from Hapoel Beer Sheva in the summer.
The defender played through the pain, however, and if he can continue to show that kind of battling spirit, he will no doubt be a firm favourite amongst the Hoops faithful.
https://twitter.com/marcmcardle1/status/1168118913844072448?s=20
Elhamed might be one of the best defenders to grace the game
— ed (@ManLikeEd) September 1, 2019
https://twitter.com/mac_mcbride/status/1168119377738313729?s=20
The newly anointed “King of Glasgow”, as one fan called him, did a fine job of stifling the precocious Aribo through the first 45, and on the basis of this outing, it’s hard to see how fellow new boy Moritz Bauer can displace him.
The Swiss full-back signed from Stoke City earlier this summer, after having a fairly uninspired last time out in which he managed just one tackle and 1.5 clearances per game, as per Whoscored.
On the front foot, he did manage 1.1 key passes, but just 0.4 successful dribbles, and honestly, based on Elhamed’s flying start to life in the biggest game in Scottish football, Bauer could have a real slog on his hands when it comes wrestling that starting place from the Israeli.
https://twitter.com/Pat75304609/status/1168120569663021056?s=20
https://twitter.com/efamcguigs/status/1168121174288678917?s=20