LIVE
...

Follow us on

Soccer News

Scott Brown suggests Celtic will actually miss Oliver Burke next season

Scott Brown of Celtic celebrates during the William Hill Scottish Cup final between Heart of Midlothian and Celtic at Hampden Park on May 25, 2019 ...
Follow us on Google Discover

Celtic captain Scott Brown has suggested Oliver Burke will be missed.

Scott Brown of Celtic celebrates during the William Hill Scottish Cup final between Heart of Midlothian and Celtic at Hampden Park on May 25, 2019 in Glasgow, Scotland.

Celtic captain Scott Brown has told The Scottish Sun that he thinks Oliver Burke will be missed after returning to West Bromwich Albion.

Brendan Rodgers pounced to sign Burke on loan in January, having seen the Scotland international struggle for first-team football at West Brom.

Rodgers was hoping to get Burke back to his best at Parkhead, but ended up leaving for Leicester just weeks later – and Neil Lennon was unable to get the best out of him.

Burke, 22, has mostly been a right winger in his career, but was often deployed as a striker at Celtic, which fans grew frustrated with after some torrid displays.

Burke struggled throughout his loan spell, becoming somewhat unpopular with Bhoys fans, especially after a non-existent showing in the 2-0 defeat at Rangers in May.

The pacey attacker won’t be returning to Parkhead, but captain Brown has surprisingly suggested that Celtic may actually miss Burke next season.

Oliver Burke of Celtic celebrates scoring his team's fourth goal during the Ladbrokes Premiership match between Celtic and Motherwell at Celtic Park on February 24, 2019 in Glasgow, United...

Brown thinks there’s a chance Lennon may end up playing two strikers next season, but thinks Burke will be missed because of his pace to get in behind defences – and that may be nudge for Lennon to bring in another speedy attacker this summer.

“You never know, the manager might play two up,” said Brown. “We tried that option with Odsonne Edouard and Oli Burke and Burkey will be a miss with that pace he has to go in behind teams when they’re trying to press you,” he added.

Oliver Burke of Celtic in action during the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and St Mirren at Celtic Park on January 23, 2019 in Glasgow, Scotland.