FORGOTTEN Celt Luis Palma insists he is willing to bide his time as he awaits a first-team opportunity.
The Honduran international winger has made just one start in four appearances in competitive action this season, but must have caught the attention of Brendan Rodgers with his hat-trick in the recent 3-2 friendly win over Sligo Rovers.
Palma was in the Hoops line-up for the kick-off against Championship side Falkirk in the Premier Sports League Cup quarter-final at Parkhead last month.
However, the 24-year-old touchline ace failed to spark and was replaced in the 61st minute by Yang Hyun-jun with the champions trailing 2-1.
BRIEF ENCOUNTER…Luis Palma congratulates Anthony Ralston on his goal in the 4-0 opening-day win over Kilmarnock at Parkhead in August.
A raft of changes – with £11million midfielder Arne Engels among those coming on – turned the tie on its head as doubles from Adam Idah and Nicolas Kuhn eased the hosts to a 5-2 triumph and a semi-final meeting with Aberdeen at Hampden at the start of next month.
Palma was an unused substitute as the teams drew 2-2 in the east end of Glasgow on Saturday.
There were no tantrums from the wide Bhoy who took to Instagram to send out a rather convoluted message that translated to: “Patience: Don’t rule yourself out, it may be the best year of your life, it’s just that it’s being reflected until the end.
“The day of the harvest is not the same as the day of the sowing.”
Palma may have been aware of the fate that befell his brief Hoops team-mate Sead Haksabanovic who also utilised social media in August last year to describe his frustration at being snubbed by the manager.
The Sweden-born Montenegrin international flanker, brought to the club the previous summer by Ange Postecoglou in a cut-price £1.7million switch from skint Rubin Kazan, ill-advisably went public with his thoughts.
Haksabanovic, who had been overlooked for the opening two matches, had made a 75th-minute appearance in the 1-0 Viaplay League Cup loss at Kilmarnock and, a week later, he came off the bench on the hour mark in the scoreless stalemate against St Johnstone.
The player said: “If they don’t see your value maybe you’re not at the right place.”
Four days later, Haksabanovic was packed off to Stoke City on a season-long loan and was sold to Malmo on a permanent basis in June.
Palma’s discretion may pay off in the long run.
