Celtic defender Gustaf Lagerbielke was not named in the matchday squad for the 1-1 draw against Motherwell on Saturday.
It was the seventh successive time that the Swedish international has been left out by manager Brendan Rodgers for a league game.
Considering Lagerbielke cost the Hoops the best part of £3m when he was signed from Elfsborg in the summer, fans on X have been left wondering why the centre-back has fallen out of favour:
Someone should ask Brendan why.
And also why is a lesser loan player taking his place on the bench ?— 🤘R4tser ラット 🐈⬛ (@R4tser) November 25, 2023
A very weird situation!
— Mark O’Donnell (@mark0donnell) November 25, 2023
Think Philips must have a squad clause in his loan contract. He'll be seen more after January
— Liam McBride (@LiamMcB32043712) November 26, 2023
We spent nearly £10m on 2 centre backs who don’t get involved at the expense of a deadline day, 6 month loanee.
Very difficult to understand.— Steven Clark (@hotbaws1) November 25, 2023
Another weird signing for money that could have been spent on an established player.
— Diamond Paulie 🇵🇸 (@thenaturebhoy56) November 25, 2023
Don’t think he has been performing in training tbh he never looked good enough for us when he did play
— David turnbull (@Davidtu16699681) November 25, 2023
He’ll be fine, will be in the squad after January, work in progress. Was thrown in too early due to injuries.
— Mark Murphy ⭐️ (@Markyjig) November 25, 2023
Lagerbielke’s Performances can’t be to blame
The 23-year-old did get sent off against Feyenoord in September but he went on to start in subsequent league games against Livingston and Motherwell, which Celtic won.
In fact, it should be pointed out that, in the 5 Scottish Premiership matches that Lagerbielke featured in, Celtic conceded just once.
Celtic have stockpiled defenders
After Nat Phillips was brought in on loan from Liverpool, the Hoops ended up with seven centre-backs in the first-team squad, which is way too many.
Combined with the fact that Rodgers tends to select just one centre-half on the bench, it is not completely surprising that Lagerbielke has been missing out. Even so, it is a rather concerning situation for the player.
