Celtic’s fixture against Lazio in the Champions League is almost certainly a must-win game for Brendan Rodgers.
It is widely accepted that if Celtic have hopes of progressing from the group stages, winning all of their three home games is a must.
An opening-day loss to Feyenoord in Rotterdam wasn’t the best of starts for the Hoops but it does shift a clear focus on tonight’s match as one that Rodgers must not lose.
Luis Palma could be pivotal to Celtic beating Lazio
Luis Palma will be buzzing at Celtic after scoring his first goal for the club against Motherwell in the 2-1 win at Fir Park on Saturday.
The Honduras international is already thrilling the staff at Celtic and opening his goal-scoring account for the club will be a huge boost to his confidence.
Letting him loose on Lazio could be the difference between Celtic taking all three points or leaving Paradise with nothing.
He is a dead-ball specialist. That is an aspect of Celtic’s play that is weak and his skill at executing free-kicks and corners could be very important.
On top of that, looking at how he started against Feyenoord, he was always looking to get on the ball, not afraid to take on his man and that will be key for Celtic unlocking the Lazio defence.
There is an argument that he looks slow for a winger but as Celtic fans saw on Saturday, he has a keen eye for goal and I don’t care what anyone says, he meant that goal against Motherwell. He has form for doing that kind of thing before.
Palma must be in Rodgers’ thoughts to start tonight and if I was the Celtic manager, I would have no hesitation in putting him in against Maurizio Sarri’s men.
In other news, ‘Not human’: Lionel Messi highlights one Celtic player’s Champions League display as ‘the best’ he has ever seen