Ange Postecoglou reveals his Starfelt plan

Ange Postecoglou is making use of his free midweeks to get game time for squad men who haven’t been involved in the weekend SPFL matches. 

After beating Ross County on Saturday there is an eight day break before the hoops take on Kilmarnock with two more blank midweeks before the League Cup tie away to Ross County on August 31. 

In previous seasons this period has usually been frantic with UEFA qualifiers every midweek overshadowing the domestic fixtures. 

Gaining direct entry to the Champions League has solved that issue but left players such as Carl Starfelt, Alexandro Bernabei and James Forrest short on matches. 

Reo Hatate, Stephen Welsh and Yosuke Ideguchi were missing from the squad that won in Dingwall at the weekend but there are others that Postecoglou wants to see getting matches in with bounce games arranged every midweek to ensure that players are as ready as possible for the heavy September fixture list. 

Speaking to Celtic TV, the hoops boss said: 

For us, we have been planning this for quite a while. It gives us an opportunity to continue to do some solid work with the boys, physically and around our game model, once the games start, we know are not going to get a lot of time to do it, now is the time to bed it down. 

We have a couple of bounce games organised for the guys who haven’t played, so when we need to throw them in, they’re match ready. You’ve seen in the first two games, we have had injuries and illnesses, I want to put them in knowing they are ready. We’re using the time as effectively as we can. 

After the Kilmarnock game Celtic have a free midweek before facing Hearts on August 21 with Dundee United at Tannadice on August 28. 

The last of Starfelt’s 51 matches last season was when he was injured for Sweden away to Slovenia on June 2.