Celtic boss Martin O’Neill backs Tomas Cvancara to shine
Celtic face the run-in with renewed optimism up front after their manager.
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill has backed new striker Tomas Cvancara to make a big impact this season and played down fears over a possible injury after his debut at Hearts.
The Czech forward, on loan from Borussia Monchengladbach, was taken off in the second half at Tynecastle, leading to concern he had suffered a hamstring problem.
With Celtic six points behind Hearts and two behind Rangers in the title race, any fresh fitness issue in attack would be a major setback.
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Celtic boss Martin O’Neill backs Tomas Cvancara to shine
However, speaking to Celtic TV, O’Neill focused only on Cvancara’s performance and potential, with no mention of an injury worry. The interim boss was full of praise for how the striker handled a tough first outing in Scotland.
O’Neill said:
“Tomas has come in, and what a baptism that was for him. Other than Ibrox, I suppose, he couldn’t have chosen a more difficult ground or a team to play against, with the top-quality players they have at the back.
And when he started to get used to the surroundings, then he used that great pace that he has, and the pull-back with his left foot was really terrific.
So when he settles down and gets his adjustments, I think he can be good for us.
So that’s nice to see, that he could add a bit of something between now and the end of the season.”
Celtic badly need a reliable goalscorer after a poor run earlier in the campaign, and the failed Wilfried Nancy experiment left them playing catch-up. Cvancara’s movement and pace against Hearts impressed O’Neill even without a goal.
