Mikey, Moh and converting talent

I could not make sense of why we signed Mohamed Elyounoussi on loan from Southampton in the last days of the 2019 summer transfer window.  He played in Mikey Johnston’s position, a prospect I had great hopes for.  Just days later, Mikey was a star at Ibrox, winning possession (albeit without much difficulty) and setting up Odsonne Edouard for the opening goal.

Mohamed proved to be an important part of yet another treble in our second nine-in-a-row season, whereas the Celtic coaches saw gaps in Mikey’s play I had missed.

It has been five years since Mikey made his debut, so long, perhaps, that we have lost sight of the fact he is only 23 and missed much of the intervening period through injury.  Jota we more readily think of as young, although the Portuguese is three weeks older.

I’m not prepared to write Mikey off.  He has an ability to switch left-to-right and back better than anyone else in the squad at the moment (including Jota).  His battles with form and end product have been common among wingers for decades and are not fatal to a successful career.

With three years left on his contract, he needs regular football and encouragement.  Celtic have to learn how to convert this level of natural talent into a successful career, even if it means sending them out for a period.