Brendan Rodgers has advised Arne Engels’ doubters they need to “learn their lesson” from earlier gamers they have been too fast to evaluate.
Celtic broke their switch document to signal the Belgian midfielder from Augsburg for £11m in the summertime.
He was extensively considered as a alternative for Matt O’Riley following his transfer to Brighton however, with three objectives and 6 assists in 16 appearances, many critics consider he has not lived as much as expectations to this point.
The 21-year-old was changed by Paulo Bernardo after an hour of Wednesday’s 1-1 Champions League draw with Membership Brugge, with some calling for the Portuguese midfielder to start out forward of him in upcoming video games.
However Rodgers was fast to level out each Bernardo and Nicolas Kuhn acquired related criticism earlier than discovering their type with the Scottish champions.
“The most recent example of that would be Paulo. It was exactly the same, if I remember back, highlighting him in his performances this time last year,” the Celtic boss stated forward of Saturday’s Premiership match in opposition to Ross County.
“Now, he cannot be cheered on loud sufficient when he enters on to the pitch. That is known as growth, it is known as persistence, it is known as time.
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Kuhn scored in Celtic’s win at Hearts of their final Premiership match
“Arne is a fantastic young player, otherwise we wouldn’t have brought him here. He doesn’t set the price.
“He is come right here to a giant membership to enhance his recreation and I’ve received completely little doubt he’ll do this.
“I know it won’t be the case, but I would hope that people will learn their lesson. The same people that were writing off Paulo and Nicolas Kuhn, it’ll be Arne Engels, it’ll be someone else.
“Some will hit the bottom operating and be wonderful and adapt completely however not everyone seems to be like that, particularly a younger participant.
“I’ve been really pleased since he’s come in because I know the future for him. He will improve, he will develop and get better. We’ve seen it so many times.”
Alistair Johnston has been nominated for the FIFA World Greatest XI
Rodgers additionally expressed his delight at right-back Alistair Johnston’s nomination for the FIFA World Greatest XI in recognition of his performances for each Celtic and Canada in 2024.
“It’s absolutely brilliant for him,” he added.
“It recognises the consistency that he’s played internationally and domestically, and shows how he’s rising as a football player. It’s a great honour for him to be recognised on that list.”
