Celtic hero Peter Grant reckons James McCarthy does have a future at Parkhead and insists he possesses the right qualities to be an influence on and off the pitch.
McCarthy had an underwhelming debut season under Ange Postecoglou after joining his boyhood club on a free transfer last summer. He made just ten league appearances and only qualified for a Scottish Premiership winners medal by the skin of his teeth on the last day of the campaign.
But now Grant believes McCarthy’s role on the training pitch could be the secret behind the consistent form of fellow midfield stars Callum McGregor, Reo Hatate and Matt O’Riley. He told Football Scotland: “Does James have a future at Celtic? That comes down to the manager. It’s difficult for an outside looking in. Everyone can pass comment and judgement. James had a few injury problems at Palace before he arrived. He did exceptionally well in England. At Celtic, he’s not played as many games as we thought he’d be involved in.
“The thing that’s interesting for me is that the manager obviously thinks he has an influence, because the manager wouldn’t even have him sitting on the bench. It’s alright people saying they are not influencing it on the pitch, but there’s managers out there that would have you sitting in the stand if you weren’t contributing anything.
"So he’s obviously offering something. I’m sure James would love to play more and people may now start to question the four-year deal.
“You’ve got to remember though, that coming from the Premier League, he would have been on a lot of money. To get anywhere near his wages, you’d probably have to do it over four years anyway. That could be a factor.
“People think footballers are mercenary at times, but they all want to play. As I say, he must be having an influence of some sort otherwise he wouldn’t be in and around the group. That’s probably the highest accolade I can pay him.
“I’d be loathe to be critical of him. I don’t know the ins and outs of it fitness wise and levels wise, but he must be influencing it in some way to get near the bench.”
Celtic returned to their Lennoxtown base for pre-season training today as they prepare to defend their Premiership crown and build on last season's Double winning success.
And Republic of Ireland international McCarthy will have less competition for a starting berth after the departures of Tom Rogic and Nir Bitton this summer.
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