INJURY forced David Turnbull onto the sidelines for three agonising months last season.
Now the gifted Celtic midfielder is keen to make up for lost time and make an even more significant contribution to the cause in the new crusade.
Turnbull had been a mainstay in Ange Postecoglou’s first-choice line-up until he limped off during the opening half of the Premier Sports League Cup Final against Hibs at Hampden six days before Christmas.
HAMPDEN SETBACK…David Turnbull prepares to hobble off in the first-half of the 2-1 Premier Sports League Cup Final win over Hibs in December last year.
The injury setback kept him out of the manager’s plans for 12 weeks before he made his welcome return against today’s opponents Ross County in a 4-0 win in the east end of Glasgow on March 19 as the chase for the tenth title in 11 years gained momentum.
Turnbull, who cost £2.75million when he arrived from Motherwell in the summer of 2020, scored 10 goals in a total of 40 appearances and he fully intends to deliver the goods in a crucial second campaign.
The 23-year-old Scotland international playmaker said: “We’re all feeling great, the first day of the season we knew what we needed to do and we could have scored more goals and played our football more. However, we know we will get better as the season goes on.
“It shows you what the manager wants from the boys. We knew we put in a good performance, but we could have been better and it’s about fixing that.
“It’s about training every day and giving it my all and when I get my chance in a game to show what I can do and I’ll give 100 per cent all the time.
“I have my own targets in my head about what I want to do this year.
BY THE RIGHT…David Turnbull in action during Celtic’s 2-0 win over Ross County in Dingwall in April.
“Game time-wise, I played a lot last year, but I had an injury and this season is about trying to play as much as I can and I’m feeling fit and ready to go.
“We also have the Champions League to look forward to which will be a great challenge for us and one I’m really looking forward to.”
Reflecting on Anthony Ralston’s stoppage-time headed winner in the team’s visit to Dingwall in December, Turnbull, speaking to Celtic TV, added: “That game showed our never-say-die attitude.
“We were pushing the full game and they sat behind the ball to make it hard to break them down.
“We had to keep playing our own football and believe in it and it worked in the end.
“They’ll be physical and put in great test on a small compact park and they will try and stamp their own quality in the game, so we know it will be a tough test.”
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