Mystery surrounding James McCarthy’s Celtic situation

James McCarthy had been linked with Celtic for years. Thus, while some eyebrows were raised when the club decided to sign him as a free agent this summer, it should not have come as a surprise.

McCarthy was a proven player in the Premier League and there was hope that he could put his injury issues behind and rediscover his form at Parkhead. Of course, that has not been the case till now.

Earlier in the campaign, McCarthy had his troubles with getting up to match speed. And once he did, he did not look brilliant in the appearances that he made. There is still hope though that he will eventually play his way into form because he was handed a long-term contract by Celtic.

Recently though, there has been some confusion around the situation with McCarthy. Firstly, he was on the bench against Aberdeen before the international break but did not come on. Then, he was left out of the matchday squad against Motherwell. There has not been any update about the midfielder suffering any injury either so one would think he is fit.

McCarthy was completely left out of the Celtic squad vs Motherwell

There is no denying the fact that McCarthy was one of Celtic’s big name signings of the summer. And till now, it is safe to say that it has not worked out.

Even more interestingly, the Hoops do not have a wealth of options in the middle of the park at the moment and one could argue that the combination of Tom Rogic and David Turnbull just does not work out at the same time.

Thus, one would feel that this is when McCarthy would get first-team opportunities, when Celtic are light on options in midfield. But that has not been the case lately following Callum McGregor’s return from injury and it remains to be seen if he can get back into the starting XI in the near future.