The 22-year-old came close to leaving the Scottish Premiership side during the summer window.
Celtic’s Jozo Simunovic in action
Celtic assistant boss Chris Davies has been full of praise for Jozo Simunovic due to the way that the defender has responded in training after he came close to leaving the club on deadline day, The Scottish Sun reports.
The Scottish Sun claims that the 22-year-old had been in Italy waiting to complete a deal to join Serie A side Torino, only for the move to ultimately fall through.
And while the events of that day may have led to an awkward feeling between the Croatian and the Hoops – as the fact the centre-back made it to Italy suggests that there was, at least, some interest from both parties in a potential exit – Davies has insisted that Simunovic’s reaction since has been excellent.
“He has responded very well,” he said, as reported by The Scottish Sun.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers
“He trains fantastically, he has got a great attitude and application. He is a lovely guy as well, he’s got personality. And when he goes on the pitch he wants to defend and be aggressive. And he can pass.
“He’s the type of defender we want and hopefully now he can go from strength to strength and show that robustness and play games, and have a good season.”
While the former Dinamo Zagreb man’s time in Scotland has been plagued by injury, his form, when he was fit, was impressive, and suggested that he could become a key man for the Scottish Premiership side in the future.
And if he can continue to impress Davies and Brendan Rodgers in training, then it may not be too long before he is given the chance to prove that the move falling through was a blessing for the Bhoys, especially if the side’s run of games without a clean sheet goes on in the coming weeks.
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