Mikael Lustig started as Scottish Premiership champions Celtic started their Europa League campaign with a 1-0 win against Rosenborg on Thursday.
Mikael Lustig was far from his best as Celtic laboured to a 1-0 Europa League win against Rosenberg on Thursday.
The Swedish defender struggled at Parkhead against his former club and looked particularly suspect defensively, before the hosts’ nerves were soothed by a late Leigh Griffiths winner.
So imagine the fans’ surprise when Lustig was included in the official Europa League Team of the Week – in an unfamiliar left-back role.
The 31-year-old started on the right against Rosenborg after all. And why he was chosen ahead of Kieran Tierney, who actually did play on the left and was one of Celtic’s better players on the night, is nothing short of a mystery.
Lustig has been a great servant at Celtic since arriving from Norway in 2012, winning the Scottish Premiership title on six occasions.
However, it seems that his best years are behind him now and it is telling that Brendan Rodgers is actively looking to sign a new right-back in 2019 after being linked to Moritz Bauer, Craig Dawson and Cristiano Piccini over the summer.
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