Celtic star midfielder David Turnbull could be frustrated with his lack of playtime since he returned from his hamstring injury that kept him out for over 20 games of the 21/22 season, claims journalist Alison McConnell.
Turnbull enjoyed perhaps the best season of his career this year under new boss Ange Postecoglou but it was cut short when he sustained a hamstring injury in December 2021 during Celtic’s 2-1 win over Hibernian.
Since, Celtic have gone on to all but wrap up the Scottish Premier League title for the 52nd time in their history as players like Reo Hatate and Tom Rogic have picked up Turnbull’s spot while he has been away.
This in turn has made it vastly more difficult for the Scottish midfielder to cement his place back in the squad since he returned from injury and has seemingly frustrated the player, and fairly so.
Journalist Alison McConnell confirmed this during her time on The Celtic Way podcast, stating: “I think you saw his influence in the opening half of the season. I think you know, he was a mainstay really in the team right up until he get injured in the League Cup final in December.
“I think you maybe saw the best of him actually, in terms of his Celtic career just in those front months of the campaign. I think he’s probably been very frustrated not to come straight back.”
TIF Thoughts on Turnbull…
The injury to Turnbull was definitely disappointing considering his good run of form that saw him pick up seven goals and seven assists while averaging 2.6 shots, 2.9 key passes, two crosses, and 1.2 long balls per game with 88.1% pass accuracy on 51.2 passes per game (via Whoscored).
However, it is tough for Postecoglou to throw him straight back into the starting lineup considering how well Celtic have continued to play in his absence. Japanese midfielder Hatate came into the squad in January and has managed to pick up four goals and three assists which has made him undroppable for the Hoops.
With some added recovery time Turnbull should be able to find some game time before the end of the season and hopefully cement himself back in the first team next season as Celtic will be hoping their aim will be to retain their SPL title.
Who should start?Turnbull
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