Scott Brown’s latest performance for Celtic illustrates how far Eboue Kouassi must go before he matches expectations set by Brendan Rodgers.
If it isn’t already obvious, Scott Brown will leave very big shoes to fill on the day that he leaves Celtic. The Hoops captain posted one of his best performances of the season in Sunday’s 3-2 win at Rangers and, even at 32, Brown’s influence remains as strong as ever
Celtic fans won’t like to admit it, but the legendary midfielder won’t be around forever, though manager Brendan Rodgers is completely prepared for that day after tipping Eboue Kouassi to become the Scot’s long-term successor at Parkhead.
He told The Record in January: “Eboue’s brilliant in training, he does everything, and longer term he will certainly fulfill that role when Scott moves on.”
Replacing Brown is a near-impossible job in itself and Kouassi could be forgiven for being very worried about the pressure that Rodgers put on him. As a result of Rodgers’s comments, that is the standard expected of Kouassi at Celtic in the future and it must be daunting.
Not only does the Ivorian – who turned 20 in December – have the pressure of having to live up to a £2.8 million transfer fee, but he also has the burden of having to replace one of the Bhoys’ best-ever players and perhaps the Northern Irishman’s comments could be deemed unfair, in light of another outstanding Brown display.
Coping with pressure is par for the course in top-level football, and those who can’t hack it simply don’t make it, but at the same time you wonder whether the Northern Irishman has jeopardised his development by giving Kouassi – who has started six Premiership games for Celtic – an impossible target.
Would Moussa Dembele have scored 30 goals last season if Rodgers made a Henrik Larsson comparison, back when Dembele had done nothing?
It’s food for thought and if Kouassi fails at Celtic it will be interesting to ask why he wasn’t good enough.
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