BRENDAN RODGERS has revealed Alistair Johnston will be given an extended break before the Premiership kicks off.
Celtic are scheduled to take on Kilmarnock at Parkhead on Sunday August 4 as they begin the defence of the title they have won for the past three years.
The champions’ squad are preparing to fly out to America next weekend for their three-game tour which will see them face DC United, Manchester City and Chelsea.
LAST SIGHTING…Alistair Johnston signed off Celtic’s double-winning 2023/24 season with a typical performance in the 1-0 Scottish Cup Final win over Rangers at Hampden on May 25.
However, right-back Johnston will NOT be involved in the trip with Canada due to play Uruguay in Charlotte in the early hours of tomorrow morning in the third place play-off in the Copa America.
Rodgers explained: “Incredibly, his season is still going. It’s absolutely brilliant, isn’t it? He’s obviously got one more game to go at the weekend and then he’ll have a breather.
“We were probably anticipating they may not have got to where they have so he would have met us over in America.
“But, no, we’ll allow him to have a rest now and then bring him back so that he’ll be ready to join us for the last week.”
Twenty-five-year-old Johnston has played the full five games for Jesse Marsch’s side, including two meetings with Lionel Messi’s World Cup winners Argentina.
Rodgers, speaking to the Scottish Sun, added: “He’s done very well. He’s been great. He really showed in the second part of the season for us that power and dominance and was really good.
CROCKED…it’s game over for Maik Nawrocki as he is led off the pitch early in the 1-1 draw with Ayr United eight days ago.
“He’s continued that and obviously he’s done great for Jesse against these countries.
“He’s had a really good tournament and we’ll see him when we come back from America.”
Maik Nawrocki, last summer’s most expensive recruit at £4.3million from Legia Warsaw, could miss out in the warm-up encounters in The States.
The former Poland Under-21 international limped off early in the 1-1 draw with Ayr United last Friday night and Rodgers is unlikely to take any risks with the central defender.
