Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has confirmed that his Scottish Premiership side will be without James McCarthy for their Champions League tie against Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday night.
The Lowdown: Starfelt out
The Hoops kicked off their European campaign with a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Real Madrid last week, but showed plenty of encouraging signs.
Centre-back Carl Starfelt missed the showdown with the Spanish giants however after being ruled out for a month due to the injury he picked up in the Glasgow derby.
Following a fresh update, it appears that he won’t be the only first-team star not involved in the action under the lights in midweek…
The Latest: Postecoglou’s team news
Speaking during his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, Postecoglou revealed that McCarthy also hasn’t made the journey to Poland with the squad as a result of illness.
He told the media:
“In terms of fitness, Carl Starfelt misses out so he’ll be out for a couple of weeks and James McCarthy wasn’t well today so he didn’t travel. Everyone else is okay.”
The Verdict: Blow for squad depth
McCarthy has found game time hard to come by since arriving at Celtic Park last summer, so his absence shouldn’t be too strongly noticed, but it is a blow the squad depth at the manager's disposal.
The Republic of Ireland international, dubbed a ‘great character’ by former Bhoys defender Gary Caldwell, has only made 23 appearances under Postecoglou and has been given the nod just once this season in the League Cup (Transfermarkt).
With Aaron Mooy having joined the likes of captain Callum McGregor, the boss already has plenty of options in the midfield, but with so many competitions to fight for and fixtures coming thick and fast due to the winter World Cup, any hits to the midfield ranks are doing to hurt.