Pedro Caixinha is convinced that Carlos Pena will play a part in Sevco’s title challenge.
In six competitive matches this season the chunky midfielder has only made one substitute appearance and was recently put on a crash fitness course.
After splashing out £3.5m to Guadalajara for Pena the 27 year old was expected to be a major player but has struggled to make an impact in a struggling team.
Caixinha has been warned about the consequences of failing to win the three Premiership matches before hosting Celtic at Ibrox on September 23 but is unlikely to be able to call upon Pena for Sunday’s crucial match away to Ross County.
“You know that sometimes when you organise the squad or the list of the players that go from one game, you look about at the options that you have on the bench in order to change the course of the game,” he told the club website.
“Because we just had two substitutions on the last game, we saw how the game was going and I really thought about Carlos Pena on the last 10 minutes, but I saw that the team was getting there and just making one chance so I don’t want to do it.
“Carlos is working hard so is Herrera. I know them very, very well and I know that they are going to help us as a team and, of course, as individual players they are going to do very good in Scottish football.
“We just need to know the exact moment to release them and give them the chance to do it. But they are really working hard and I think that they are at the same level as the others at the moment.”
With Celtic and Aberdeen playing on Saturday Sevco are likely to kick off against Ross County eight points behind the pace setters.
After signing 11 players during the transfer window the current squad is most definitely Caixinha’s but with results poorer than under Mark Warburton the pressure is mounting on the fifth best coach in Qatar.