Scales and the Great Left Back Consistency since 2010

18 months from the end of his contract, it’s good to read Brendan Rodgers talk about securing Liam Scales on a long-term deal.  The player is unrecognisable from the man who struggled against St Johnstone in August and is a testament to what happens when you develop a player properly.

Successive Aberdeen managers, Jim Goodwin and Barry Robson saw his potential, as did the Celtic scouts who recruited him from Shamrock Rovers in 2021 for little more than £500k.  However, his career upwards trajectory could have been lost were it not for Celtic’s central defensive injury crisis at the start of the season.

Carter-Vickers, Lagerbielke, Nawrocki, Phillips and Welsh were all unavailable at various stages during the first half of the season, leaving Liam as the permanent feature Celtic built their central defence on.

One of the main reasons I’m keen we retain Liam’s services for years to come is his preferred foot and second position.  As a left footer, he gives a more natural balance to central defence than is possible with two right footers.  He can also play left back, a position pretty much every club in the world struggles to recruit for.

Lefties are 10% of the population and are considered a mandatory requirement to play at left back, even more so than having a engine to get up and down the field or an ability to cross.

Celtic have had remarkable consistency at left back since 2010.  Emilio Izaguirre, then Kieran Tierney, then Greg Taylor made the position their own.  Taylor has seen off a few competitors for the spot and is approaching his peak years.  I’d like to see if Liam can be an option there, in the event we need one.