CELTIC fans will get a rare glimpse of forgotten man Michel-Ange Balikwisha in the team’s Scottish Cup encounter against Auchinleck Talbot at Rugby Park tomorrow.
Amazingly, the £4.5million summer purchase from Royal Antwerp has not started a game since the champions’ stoppage-time win over Kilmarnock at the same venue on September 14.
Balikwisha made his debut in the dismal scoreless stalemate at Ibrox on August 31 where he barely got a touch of the ball before being replaced by the evergreen James Forrest just after the hour mark.
In a fairly discouraging sequence, the 24-year-old DR Congo international has made only 13 appearances for the Hoops, with 11 coming off the substitutes’ bench.
ON THE RUN…£4.5m new Bhoy Michel-Ange Balikwisha races away from James Tavernier in Celtic’s 0-0 draw at Ibrox in August.
Now, after a wait of over four months, Balikwisha, who hasn’t been sighted since a cameo in woeful Wilfried Nancy’s second game – the 3-0 home flop to AS Roma in the Europa League last month – is preparing to return against sixth-tier Talbot in Ayrshire.
Quizzed on the player’s situation, Martin O’Neill answered: “Well, I think he’s just waiting for an opportunity to play. Hopefully, he will be involved tomorrow in the game.
“Even though he didn’t get a start under me, he came on a couple of times as sub, but the games were pretty well fired through at that stage and I said to him that the new manager coming in may well find out that he’s as good as anyone we have at the football club.
“And that may still be the case. In terms of the training, he’s been back from the African Nations Cup for a few days now. He wasn’t in our squad for the game the other night, but he’ll participate tomorrow and give me an idea.
“I know it’s on the plastic surface, but, even so, it gives me an opportunity to have a look.”
Following his non-involvement in the 1-0 victory at Falkirk in midweek, there were suggestions Balikwisha had aimed a thinly-veiled swipe at his lack of minutes at the club on social media.
WIDE BHOY…Michel-Ange Balikwisha sidesteps a challenge from Kilmarnock’s David Watson during the champions’ 2-1 win at Rugby Park in September. Sebastian Tounekti gets a close-up view.
O’Neill, though, is adamant the ball-player hasn’t spat out the dummy as he attempts to get on track after being criticised in some quarters for his country’s AFCON exit to Algeria following an 119th-minute winner for the opposition.
The Parkhead interim manager, speaking to the Daily Record, continued: “He was disappointed after getting on pretty late and it went into extra-time.
“I think he lost the ball in some aspect, but the goal was scored much, much later than was said. There was build-up and stuff like this here, but he was blaming himself for that. He’s a really, genuinely nice lad.
“He’s a very nice footballer and trains well, too. He’s never come in and moaned about not being in the side.”
O’Neill also reckons a change in position may bring a switch in fortune for Balikwisha, who operated on the left wing in Belgium.
WATCHING BRIEF…Martin O’Neill looks on as Celtic grind out a 1-0 win at Falkirk with backroom boys Shaun Maloney and Gavin Strachan also keeping an eye on proceedings.
The astute Irishman added: “Well, my view would be that he would be more like a number 10. Absolutely. He wouldn’t be a full-blown striker and he’s definitely NOT a wide player.
“I think it’s just up to the player now. It must be difficult to come in at the time he has done and not be getting the starts. I thought that Wilfried might have played him, but that’s everyone to their own.
“But, really, we spent some money on him and it’s up to him now to try and do it.
“I will make some changes on the side tomorrow. But I’m still fearful about that type of thing.
“It’s backfired before, but somewhere along the way I have to find out what some of the players who haven’t played during my time here can do.”
Over to you, Michel-Ange and Co!
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