Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers plans to give more young players a chance

BRENDAN RODGERS will give more young players the chance to shine this season after Calvin Miller made his debut in Tuesday’s 1-0 home win over Partick Thistle.

The 18-year-old, primarily an attacker, started at left-back and played just over an hour before being replaced by Emilio Izaguirre, with the Northern Irishman pleased with what he saw from the youngster.

Ahead of the trip to Hamilton in the Ladbrokes Premiership Saturday, where the Hoops hope to extend their 21-game unbeaten domestic run this term, Rodgers revealed his aim to continue giving youth a chance.

“Between now and the end of the season, more young players will get opportunities, I am pretty certain of that,” he said.

“I wanted to see Calvin under a bit of pressure. We only have one recognised left-back at the moment in Emilio and he has been doing very well but, like all the other players, I have tried to give them a game where they can recover or rest physically and mentally and I felt that was a good game to put young Calvin in.

“Partick have some really good players – the boy (David) Amoo on the side is strong and fast.

“I like to test the young players. You can’t always bring them in and for it to be comfortable, you want to see how they react and how they can deal with a tough situation, and I felt the boy did very well.”

The Hoops boss is keen to cultivate a culture of versatility among the club’s young players, highlighting as an example Callum McGregor who has played in various positions for the first team

Rodgers said: “It’s very important to have that versatility as that sort of multi-functioning player allows you to have a small squad as you have players who can cope in various positions.

“Callum McGregor is an example of that. He’s an outstanding young player for the squad here. He doesn’t always get the credit for what his qualities are, but managers and coaches will always appreciate it.

“Sometimes it’s the guys who make the heroic blocks and score the goals that get all the credit but he’s a young player who is very important to our squad.

“We have a number of those players. If you ask them to play at left-back, wide on the right or central midfield then they play the position without fuss. They don’t moan or groan and get on with doing what is best for the team.”