Celtic handed unexpected Cameron Carter-Vickers injury boost

Celtic were handed a hammer blow when it emerged that Cameron Carter-Vickers had picked up an injury in the game against Livingston at the weekend, on the artificial turf, and was set to miss the trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to play against Real Madrid. It is safe to assume that the American would not have wanted to miss a match of this magnitude.

Thus, fears were sparked amongst Celtic fans that Carter-Vickers had reinjured himself, only after returning from a spell on the sidelines recently.

It does not look like that is the case though. In fact, judging from Postecoglou’s comments, his absence might be more precautionary than anything else, with nothing really riding on the result of the game against Real Madrid except for sporting pride of course.

Carter-Vickers could be fit in time for the game this weekend, which is a boost not many people would have seen coming. As reported by Glasgow Times, Postecoglou said about the defender’s condition:

"“He (Carter-Vickers) should be right for the weekend.“He’s just come back from a knee injury and he’s just got a bit of soreness. He’s one of the few who has played every game so we’ve got to be conscious of that and with the short turnaround we felt it was best we left him at home for this one.”"

Postecoglou confirms unexpected Carter-Vickers boost for Celtic

It is safe to say that this is great news for Celtic. Carter-Vickers is the best defender at the club right now, and while they will miss his presence at the back against Real Madrid, it is much more important to not risk any injuries and have him available in the long run, with the club competing for three domestic titles.

Of course, it is not just his defensive abilities that Celtic will miss against Real Madrid but his leadership abilities as well. Carter-Vickers has been the one with the arm band in the absence of Callum McGregor.

Thus, it will be interesting to see who ends up captaining Celtic against Real Madrid, with both Carter-Vickers and McGregor out. Joe Hart might be the most qualified though, with the amount of experience that he has in the bag.