If Leigh Griffiths needs any advice on how to earn a place in the Celtic side he could do worse than listen to John Hartson.
In August 2001 the Welshman joined Celtic in a £6m deal from Coventry with Henrik Larsson and Chris Sutton leading Martin O’Neill’s side to the treble at the end of the previous season.
Hartson had to bide his time to get the chance to impress but went on to score over 100 goals for the hoops, picking up a bucket load of medals and playing a key role in the road to Seville.
Griffiths has been on the bench since recovering from a hamstring strain with Moussa Dembele cementing his credentials and drawing attention from some of the biggest names in the game.
Tomorrow at Hampden Griffiths seems certain to start on the bench with Hartson urging the former Hibs striker to bide his time until he gets the call from Brendan Rodgers.
“I understand Leigh’s frustrations, of course I can,” Hartson explained in The Sun. “He knows Dembele has been on fire but I do think the modern-day game is about a squad.
“I don’t think Leigh will have any intentions at this moment in time of leaving the club or kicking up a fuss. I know he’s very happy there and signed a five-year contract.
“He just has to be a little bit patient. He missed a few games through injury. Then while he was out, the team was winning and Dembele was scoring goals.
“Leigh just has to keep training well and keep reminding Brendan he’s ready to go in.
Who knows, he might even play up front on his own. He just needs to be ready, he can’t switch off.
“Then when he gets back in he’s got to keep Dembele out the team.
“I agree with what Brendan is doing but I can’t say the same about Gordon Strachan’s reasons for not picking Leigh for Scotland. Gordon said it was because he sometimes needed more height when they were defending set-pieces. To me that’s nonsense.”
Harson will be part of BT Sport’s team at Hampden tomorrow for the Celtic v Sevco semi-final.
