Maik Nawrocki was thrown into the deep end for his first start of the season in Sunday’s Glasgow Derby—and he delivered an admirable performance despite Celtic’s defeat.
With Liam Scales and Auston Trusty both ruled out, Brendan Rodgers had little choice but to call on the Polish centre-back, who had only played 23 minutes of cup football this season. Despite the lack of game time, Nawrocki rose to the occasion, standing out as one of Celtic’s best performers on the day.
It would have been easy to struggle in a high-intensity match after months on the fringes, but Nawrocki didn’t put a foot wrong. He handled Rangers’ attacking threats well, showed composure on the ball, and never looked out of place—arguably Celtic’s standout player in an otherwise frustrating afternoon.
Given his lack of game time this season, many fans have questioned why Rodgers has been reluctant to use him, especially when defensive issues have plagued the team in recent months.
Rodgers himself acknowledged the defender’s efforts, singling him out for praise after the match.
“I thought he done really well. I said that to him afterwards in the changing room. There weren’t too many highlights for us. But certainly for him, for a guy that’s not played virtually for a year, it shows you how well he’s trained and how professional he’s been. So I thought he done really, really well to last the game.” [TCW]
It remains to be seen whether Nawrocki’s performance will earn him more opportunities, or if he will return to being an overlooked option in Rodgers’ squad. But when called upon, he delivered—and after a season of waiting, he finally showed why Celtic spent £4.3 million on him.
