Tilio Time: Summer Signing Marco must demonstrate what he brings to Celtic.
If Marco Tilio doesn’t receive a chance now, he might never get one…
The news that Daizen Maeda will be away for six weeks is devastating. Daizen has his detractors, but make no mistake: his loss will be felt, and not in a good way. With Liel Abada still out injured, another space will open up for a wide player.
Yang and Luis Palma are obvious options, as is James Forrest, but we still need another fresh face among those names. Who is Marco Tilio, you may ask? Celtic’s £2 million summer acquisition from Melbourne City.
The Australian was highly praised when he signed, but due to an injury sustained with the Socceroos shortly after signing, we have yet to see him in action.
He has participated in a few games for Celtic B but appears to have dropped off the radar. Brendan Rodgers has stated that Marco needs to familiarize himself with the Scottish game; while this may be true, shouldn’t he have done so by now?
Rodgers also said that he didn’t know much about the player, so all he’s got to work with is what he appears to be at Lennoxtown, and he chooses his team based on the best players available to him for each game.
If Marco has impressed the boss in training, there’s no reason why we won’t see him soon.
Now is the ideal time for Marco to be called up to the squad. With injuries hindering our progress, now is the opportunity for him to prove his worth if Brendan believes he is ready. If not, I suspect he will because it’s a position we’ve grown accustomed to over the years. But hopefully not in this case.