Moussa Dembele will make his Celtic debut tomorrow night when the hoops take on Olimpija Ljubljana in the third match of their pre-season preparations.
The 19-year-old agreed a move from Fulham last week and officially became a Celtic player on Sunday with the London side only entitled to a small development fee.
As Brendan Rodgers’ first signing a lot will be expected of Dembele who is likely to team up with Leigh Griffiths when the competitive action gets underway next week.
Rodgers hasn’t raced into the transfer market but is sure of what he is getting from the striker who was subject of a £6m bid from Spurs during the January transfer window.
“Moussa will feature on Wednesday night,” the Celtic boss stated looking forward to the match against Olimpija.
“He has only just linked with us and you have to give him a few days, otherwise there is a high risk of injury. He will play some part on Wednesday.”
While Dembele is very much a part of Rodgers’ plans the same can’t be said for Kris Commons who is recovering from an end of season back operation.
Commons is heavily associated with the Neil Lennon era at Celtic Park and seems to come under extra scrutiny with the arrival of any new manager.
Scoring 31 goals in the 2013/14 season would provide most players with some breathing space but that tally is almost held against Commons with each passing season.
“For Kris or any player they have to be able to play how I want to work,” Rodgers said. “They have to be able to run. They have to be able to press. They have to be aggressive. They have to be able to touch and get up to people.
“Celtic are used to having the ball of course but you have to get the ball back. The possibility is open to every player but at this moment in time Kris is just worrying about getting fit. And then – we will see where he is at.”