The 24-year-old has been discussing who he expects to play alongside him against the Citizens.
Celtic’s Erik Sviatchenko
Erik Sviatchenko has hinted that he will be starting Celtic’s Champions League clash with Manchester City on Wednesday after discussing the contenders for who will play alongside him, The Scottish Sun reports.
With Pep Guardiola’s men scoring 30 goals already this season, Brendan Rodgers will know that getting his central defensive partnership right could be crucial to their hopes of avoiding the kind of defeat they suffered at the hands of Barcelona on the previous matchday.
Celtic’s Kolo Toure in action with Barcelona’s Lionel Messi
With Jozo Simunovic recently returning from injury, he has moved himself into contention alongside Sviatchenko and Kolo Toure for a place in the team against the Citizens.
But while none of the trio have particularly shone or struggled in recent weeks, the Dane is confident that his place is safe and Toure and Simunovic are the ones battling for the other spot.
Celtic’s Jozo Simunovic
“Jozo did well. Whoever I will partner I am ready for the challenge. We have a really good squad. If you are competing in different competitions you have to have a big squad,” he said, as reported by The Scottish Sun.
“I am confident that I am doing my job.”
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers
Of course, given the amount of preparation that would need to be done ahead of a game that sees the Hoops come up against the likes of Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling, it would not be a huge surprise if Rodgers has already informed some of his players that they will be involved.
However, if that is not the case, it seems extremely premature for Sviatchenko to be so confident. Toure will know some of these players better than any of his rivals – having played for City until 2013 – while Simunovic is undoubtedly a highly-talented option so it would not be a surprise if he got the nod also.
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