John Hartson suggests that Celtic should be demanding a lot more from Odsonne Edouard this season.
Edouard has endured a mixed campaign following his permanent move to Parkhead in the summer. The 20-year-old has scored six times in 15 appearances, including two in his last two for the Hoops.
The lengthy goalless spell between his strikes against Livingston and Red Bull Salzburg lasted exactly two months, and Hartson feels that Brendan Rodgers has reason to not be entirely happy with the forward – despite his age.
“But he has had a relatively quiet start to the season. There will be more to come from him and it is difficult when you are playing with a pretty big pricetag around your neck but I’d like to see Edouard in and about it a bit more over these next few months.”
It is a difficult situation for Edouard to be in. Last season, his fairly slow start to the campaign – he made just six appearances and scored one goal by the end of November – arguably helped dampen expectations, but he has now joined permanently for a club-record fee.
And with Moussa Dembele’s departure putting more pressure on Edouard and Leigh Griffiths, it is tougher for the youngster to get away with the kind of underwhelming performances that he should be allowed to make every now and then at this stage of his career.
But with two goals in as many games heading into the international break, perhaps Edouard now has the boost he needs to prove that there is much more to come from him over the coming months.
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