Celtic midfielder Ismaila Soro has had to wait a while for his big chance with the Bhoys, but he’s taking it now.
Neil Lennon’s men pounced to sign Soro from Israeli side Bnei Yehuda in January of this yer, seemingly landing him as Scott Brown’s heir.
The Ivorian was barely seen until last week though. Soro made just four substitute appearances before starting against Lille and Kilmarnock.
Soro made a big impact in those games, helping Celtic pick up a couple of wins in what has been a difficult time for the Bhoys.
The 22-year-old will now be looking to string together a run of starts, and whilst benching key veteran Brown won’t be an easy decision, Lennon may have no other option if Soro continues to impress.
He has shown that, whilst he is diminutive, he is aggressive and combative, embodying some of the qualities that have made Brown a favourite at Parkhead.
Now, Celtic hero Frank McAvennie has told The Herald that he thinks Soro is similar to Chelsea star N’Golo Kante, believing that he is nasty player who will put tackles in and get stuck in.
“He made more tackles against Lille than I’ve seen from a Celtic player in any match for a very long time,” said McAvennie. “He has a tenacity to his game, he wants to win the ball. He reminds me of Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante or even Dennis Wise, who was a nasty little sod but he would graft,” he added.
Kante cost Chelsea £32million in 2016, whereas Celtic paid £2million for Soro – and if he can be even half as good as Kante, Celtic will feel they landed a bargain.
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