Lewis Morgan was far from his best as Neil Lennon’s Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic suffered a Europa League defeat in Romania.
To say Celtic’s Europa League clash away at Cluj on Thursday afternoon was nothing more than a meaningless, box-ticking dead rubber completely misses the point.
Neil Lennon’s side might have already qualified for the knockout stages, all the while topping a European group for the first time in their history, but a testing trip to Romania gave so many of Celtic’s fringe players a rare chance to prove that they deserve a bigger role in the manager’s plans.
Unfortunately, apart from 18-year-old midfielder Scott Robertson, who did his best Frenkie de Jong impression with a neat and tidy performance in the centre of the park, the Hoops’ other seldom-seen stars missed their chance in a 2-0 defeat which highlighted the gulf in class between Lennon’s usual starters and his limited second string.
Talisman turned bench-warmer Scott Sinclair was completely ineffective on the left, Boli Bolingoli made a crucial error for Cluj’s second goal, while Vakoun Issouf Bayo struggled to control the ball, let alone stick it in the back of the home side’s net.
But, not for the first time this season, it was Lewis Morgan who copped so much criticism from the keyboard warriors on social media.
Anonymous up front in the League Cup final against Rangers, the former St Mirren winger was similarly ineffective back in his favourited wide role in Romania. Just two goals and three assists in 17 games this season; patience is wearing thin.
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