Former Celtic star Chris Sutton has heaped praise on Ange Postecoglou for the huge decision he got spot on yesterday.
Celtic picked up possibly their biggest win of the season as they earned a 2-1 victory in what was their second successive Old Firm derby win, which has seen them move six points clear of their arch-rivals with just one game left to play before the split.
Could Rogic become a Celtic legend?
Yes!
No!
Postecoglou watched on from the sidelines as his side made the worst start possible to the game after Aaron Ramsey netted the opening goal within three minutes, however, a quick response from Tom Rogic and then a strike by Cameron Carter-Vickers just before half-time put them in the driver’s seat.
Sutton believes that Postecoglou’s decision to start Rogic over January signing Matt O’Riley – who got the nod in the reverse fixture – paid off, with the Australian international scoring an important equaliser, and the former Celtic man explained why Postecoglou got it spot on.
Writing in his column for the Daily Record, Sutton said: “I have to tip my hat to Ange Postecoglou. He got the huge pre-match calls correct. When I thought about a Celtic starting line-up, there were two positions that I wasn’t sure about. The first was midfield and the choice between Tom Rogic and Matt O’Riley.
“The Denmark Under-21 international had performed so well in the previous encounter against Rangers that I thought he might get the nod. But Postecoglou went with Rogic and the payoff was terrific. Everyone knows my feelings on Rogic and it was all there again from him.”
TIF Thoughts on Rogic starting in the derby…
Rogic wasn’t available for Celtic’s 3-0 win over Rangers earlier in the season, but he is clearly someone Postecoglou knows and trusts being a fellow Australian and an experienced player in the SPFL, as well as having racked up 265 appearances for the Bhoys, so there’s little surprise he was handed a start on Sunday.
O’Riley is certainly a promising player at just 21 years of age, however, in such an important game in a hostile environment, it was a cool and calculated decision from Postecoglou to start Rogic.
In other news: BBC man now drops ‘great’ Celtic dressing room claim after Ibrox win