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Celtic: Ryan Christie will be unavailable for 14 days as he must self-isolate

By Luke Seychell

Posted on 7 October 2020, 21:50

Celtic announced this morning that striker Odsonne Edouard will have to isolate for 14 days after testing positive for COVID-19 whilst on international duty with the French under-21 squad.

The news now gets worse for Neil Lennon as another of his star players will also need to isolate due to the pandemic.

Celtic must plan without Ryan Christie

According to The Guardian, Southampton player Stuart Armstrong has tested positive whilst preparing for international duty with Scotland. As a result, fellow internationals Kieran Tierney and Hoops star Ryan Christie will now have to isolate as they have been in close contact with the ex-Parkhead midfielder recently.

How Christie’s absence will impact Celtic

The 25-year-old has played 107 times for the Hoops, per Transfermarkt, scoring 35 goals and assisting 33. The attacking midfielder has also won six trophies with the club.

He has been in very good form at the start of the 2020/21 campaign as he has seven assists and three goals in his 13 appearances this term, per Transfermarkt. These figures highlight that Celtic might have lost a great attacking asset and, with fixtures coming up against Glasgow Rangers and AC Milan, this is the last thing Lennon would have wanted.

Christie is also very versatile and has played up front when the manager has rested Edouard, per SofaScore. With the Frenchman having to isolate for 14 days, Christie could have been the perfect alternative in his absence.

Lennon definitely has an issue with centre-forwards at the moment as James Forrest is injured as well, so he might have to rely on some of his squad depth to get him through the next few fixtures. There is no doubt that Christie’s absence could have a big impact on the squad, especially if some of his Celtic team-mates don’t step up.

Hoops fans, how big a blow will Christie’s absence be? Comment below with your views!