Scott Brown is nearing a return for Celtic, with manager Brendan Rodgers revealing the injured star is “doing really well” in his recovery and “hopefully will be in the squad” to face Rosenborg on Thursday. The 33-year-old has been out of action since mid-October, having been withdrawn after 20 minutes against Hibernian due to a knee injury. He’s missed four league games, two in the Champions League and one outing in the Scottish League Cup.
Despite losing such an influential player, Celtic have flourished in his absence. In the Premiership, they beat Dundee FC (5-0), Heart of the Midlothian (5-0) and Hamilton Academical (3-0) while drawing with Livingston (0-0). They also beat Hearts in the cup (3-0). In the Europa League, however, Celtic lost at RB Leipzig (2-0) but won at home (2-1). Brown could make the squad for their upcoming European counter with Rosenborg, although he’s unlikely to start.
As per the Daily Record, Rodgers said: “It was just too much of a risk (to play him against Hamilton recently) but he’s been doing really well so we’ll see how he is over the next few days. Hopefully he will be in and around the squad for (Thursday). If we have a chance to qualify (for the knockout stages) then of course it’s a game we’d want to win.”
Brown has made 19 appearances in all competitions this season. Celtic struggled earlier in the campaign but have found more consistency in recent weeks, which ironically coincided with the captain’s absence. Having the Scottish international as an option in midfield is only a good thing, however, as it allows Rodgers to rotate his squad for different competitions. Fans should be waiting too long to see the return of Brown.
Stats from Transfermarkt.
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