The World Cup break is upon us and Celtic fans should be very happy with where the Hoops find themselves in at the moment. Ange Postecoglou’s side have a commanding 9-point lead over the Rangers in the Premiership table after just 15 league games have been played. They are also in the Scottish League Cup semi-final and will take on Kilmarnock at Hampden Park in January.
Celtic look ready to make good use of the World Cup break as well. They will be heading to Australia to take part in the Sydney Super Cup.
There, they will face off against Sydney FC and Everton, in a glamour friendly. It is a big deal for Celtic without any doubt and the club have decided to take their strongest squad possible for it. Of course, except for the players who will be involved in the World Cup, namely Cameron Carter-Vickers, Josip Juranovic, Aaron Mooy and Daizen Maeda.
Celtic’s decision not to let the Scottish players go for national team duty has caused some controversy, where there should not really be any, considering it is a friendly against Turkey with nothing riding on the result. Kenny Dalglish wrote in his column in The Sunday Post:
"I understand the stance taken by the Parkhead club.They’ve signed a contract to take a squad to Australia for a tournament, and they are taking their best players.It will also be a part of their preparation for the second-half of the campaign as they try to retain the title and get back into the Champions League.With this date not being officially recognised in the international calendar, Ange Postecoglou is perfectly within his rights.I’ve no doubt that had this been a competitive game – or preparation for going to the World Cup – then any Celtic player called up would be with their country."
Dalglish backs up Celtic amid controversy
It is safe to say that a lot of Celtic fans have bought tickets to see the team play in Australia. It falls within the duty of the club to give them the best show possible.
Of course, if there had been anything riding on the Scotland national team’s game against Turkey, one could have rest assured that the player would have been there.
That is not the case though. So, Celtic cannot be blamed by anyone for looking out for their own fans. They have made the correct decision here and should in fact be commended for it.