Marvin Compper has not played a Scottish Premiership or Europa League game since joining Celtic from RB Leipzig last January.
Marvin Compper certainly made his feelings clear as his omission from first-team duty shows no signs of ending.
The 33-year-old has played just once for Celtic since he arrived for £1 million from RB Leipzig nine months ago, featuring only in the Scottish Cup quarter-final clash against Greenock Morton.
Speaking to Bild, Compper has now talked about his lack of opportunities, sending a very obvious message to Brendan Rodgers.
“I’m fit and I train very well,” said the one-time Germany international.
“Even my teammates do not understand why I do not play. In the summer I had a calf injury. I got an athletic trainer and a physio at my own expense and made myself fit. Now it is up to the coach Brendan Rodgers to finally give me the trust.
“I still have a contract until 2020, but of course I do not want to sit on the bench. In August, Celtic suggested to me about a change of club. But I do not want to move on so easily. I hope for my chance and want to play.”
The obvious reaction would be to express indignation at a player for daring to speak out publicly and question his manager’s decisions and team selection. But maybe Compper makes a good point.
Celtic’s defence has looked shaky ever since the turn of the year, especially in European fixtures against the likes of AEK Athens and Red Bull Salzburg.
Youngsters Kristoffer Ajer and Jack Hendry have been handed brutal lessons against continental opposition, while Dedryck Boyata hardly appeared to have his head in the game in the second-half collapse in Austria a fortnight ago.
So a player with Compper’s experience and composure at the heart of the back line, not to mention his ability to build play from deep, could have come in very handy in European football.
The veteran centre-back has plenty to offer and Rodgers would do well to remember why he signed him.
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