MARTIN O’NEILL utilised nine substitutes in the 2-2 stalemate with AC Milan at Parkhead on Saturday.
Michel-Ange Balikwisha was not among them.
While the likes of Thomas Hatton, Sean McArdle and Adam Montgomery were introduced to the action against the Serie club, the Belgian, a £4.5million arrival from Royal Antwerp 11 months ago, remained on the bench.
That fact alone does not bode well for the winger as Celtic prepare for the Premiership season kick-off on Monday with the visit of Dundee. In his debut campaign, Balikwisha made a mere four starts in 14 sporadic outings.
His last league appearance came in the 4-0 home win over Falkirk on October 29 last year in O’Neill’s first stint as interim manager.
The DR Congo international replaced James Forrest just after the hour mark – and has been off the competitive radar ever since.
DERBY DEBUT…Michel-Ange Balikwisha and James Tavernier in a race for the ball in the new Celt’s first appearance during the goalless derby encounter at Ibrox last August.
At 25, the wide Bhoy will realise he is at the crossroads of his career. He signed a five-year contract last summer, but, judging on what we have already witnessed, a snowball would stand a better chance of survival in hell than the player morphing into a pivotal player at the champions.
Balikwisha made his debut in the Glasgow derby at Ibrox on August 31 – just days after agreeing the switch – and it would be fair to say he didn’t quite make a favourable first impression.
He lasted 20 minutes into the second-half before he got the hook – old favourite Forrest getting the nod to take over – and that anonymous performance in Govan during a stupefying scoreless stalemate was an indicator of what the Celtic fans could expect in the weeks and months to follow.
The player just never got into his stride.
Earlier this month, O’Neill opted to give Balikwisha a place in the first of the team’s four pre-season warm-up encounters against Shelbourne in Dublin.
YOUR NUMBER’S UP…Michel-Ange Balikwisha poses with his new Celtic jersey on the day he sealed his £4.5million move from Royal Antwerp in August last year.
It was obvious to all the forward was eager to get involved and looked up for the challenge. The manager changed the entire side for the second-half of the 1-1 draw, but the player was in the line-up at the kick-off against Sporting Lisbon in Portugal.
Again, he made way at the interval when Arne Engels came on in his place.
Balikwisha had to wait until just before the hour mark to get the nod to replace new Bhoy Camilo Duran in the 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough at Parkhead which was followed by his no-show against the Italian aces at the weekend.
Only a nincompoop or a relentless optimist would believe he has an important role to play as the Hoops aim for three points against the Dens Park outfit in six days’ time.
In many ways, Balikwisha appears to be a replica of Derk Boerrigter. Does anyone remember that monumental waste of £3million? He joined from Ajax in July 2013 and arrived with the ominous nickname of ‘Sicknote’.
The Dutch flanker made his debut against Ross County at Parkhead four days after signing and – surprise! surprise! – limped off six minutes before the interval.
NOW YOU SEE ME…Derk Boerrigter hits the deck before hirpling off in the first-half of his debut against Ross County in August 2013.
The 2-1 win over the Dingwall outfit was one of only eight starts in his 26 appearances. He scored one goal, in a 3-1 home victory over Aberdeen in November 2013.
His final appearance came as a second-half substitute in the 1-0 home loss to Maribor in August 2014, a defeat that eliminated Celtic from the Champions League at the qualifying stage.
Boerrigter hung around, contributed zilch and trained with the kids before he was paid off in April 2016 with 14 months of his contract to run.
At the age of 30, ‘Sicknote’ couldn’t find another club and elected to hang up his boots. The decision proved to be no great loss to football.
I doubt if anything as extreme awaits Balikwisha – I hope not, anyway – but the warning signs are flashing.
The sooner a resolution is found to rectify this particular predicament, the better for the player and the club.
Barring an unforeseen and sensational turn of events, Balikwisha’s future is not at Celtic.
ALEX GORDON
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