Celtic defender Filip Benkovic should be in the mix for a starting XI position.
Celtic defender Filip Benkovic has insisted that he needs to improve the physical side of his game and believes playing in the Scottish league will help him with that progression.
The 6ft 4in giant is a highly-rated centre-back, but believes he can still get stronger and better with individual battles.
He made his debut for the Bhoys against St Mirren at the weekend and the early signs are that he’s extremely confident in possession.
The Croatian defender was spraying long-range passes all over the park and looks to be a decent loan signing from Premier League side Leicester City.
Manager Brendan Rodgers is preparing his team to face Rosenborg in the Europa League group stages on Thursday night and the man mountain is in contention to feature.
Benkovic has revealed his individual targets for improvement and is now set on breaking into the side on a regular basis.
“It’s a very physical league and I like that as I think I can improve in this area,” Benkovic said, as quoted by the club’s official website.
“There are a lot of fixtures coming up and, for me, I just want to improve in training and give everything that I can to prove that I deserve to play.”
Benkovic, 21, may be in the perfect division to develop as a player and he will need to be physically strong to deal with some of the centre-forwards he will face in Scotland.
The youngster should fill out over the next couple of years and that combined with his height makes him an ideal fit for centre-back.
He already has a lot of traits that make him a modern-day defender, which is why Dedryck Boyata and Kristoffer Ajer face serious competition for a starting position.
Benkovic’s performances at former club Dinamo Zagreb certainly prove the defender is not too lightweight for the Celtic XI, but that his strengths lie in other areas.
His admission over his own physicality is a good sign and he is definitely someone that should improve throughout the season.
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