There are many Celtic fans who generally cannot be bothered with international football.
Now that the season has ended, the international calendar kicked in and Celtic fans watched their heroes take on some of the best players in world football.
One reason international football is disliked is that it poses a risk to players’ fitness. Fans saw that when Celtic defender Kieran Tierney pulled out of Scotland’s game against Liechtenstein last week.
However, with Scotland’s recent struggles in front of goal, Steve Clarke has been told that what Brendan Rodgers did with Celtic in 2016 could help him get the best out of Liverpool’s Ben Doak.
Celtic FC v Rangers FC - Cinch Scottish Premiership
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Michael Stewart says a 2016 Celtic blueprint can actually help Scotland
After Scotland beat Liechtenstein, Stewart believes that if Clarke tweaked Scotland’s system to mirror what Brendan Rodgers did at Celtic during his first spell could unlock Ben Doak’s potential on the international level.
Stewart told BBC Sportsound [16m 22s], “If you think back to when Brendan Rodgers was first in charge at Celtic, for example, and we talk about systems and as if it’s like they’re static.
“They’re not, these are fluid. Celtic, they had that back four of Lustig, the two centre halves and Tierney.
“And what would happen was Tierney would step higher up the park, Sinclair would step off and become like a second number 10, and James Forrest was a bit of a right wing back.
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“But he had Lustig there that would slide across and meant he didn’t have to be back as a defensive entity as much.
“So you could look at something like that where Ben Doak’s playing as a right wing back, but he’s playing more middle to front rather than having to drop back as much.”
How Ben Doak has fared since leaving Celtic for Liverpool
Celtic had high hopes for Ben Doak when he was in the B team. Unfortunately, lack of first-team football and the lure of joining Liverpool and their world-class stars was too hard to knock back.
So how has the youngster fared since his Parkhead exit to the Premier League?
Ben Doak Played Goals Assists
Liverpool 10 0 0
Middlesbrough 24 3 7
With two years left on his current deal at Liverpool, Doak has plenty of time to add to those 10 appearances and prove that his decision to leave Celtic was the correct one.