Dane Murray played well in Stuttgart and at Ibrox, now he needs to keep it going

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The Celtic Star

·3 March 2026

Dane Murray played well in Stuttgart and at Ibrox, now he needs to keep it going

Young Dane Murray can hold his head high after two impressive performances in successive tough away fixtures these past few days…

Dane Murray of Celtic looks dejected after his side concedes a second goal scored by Youssef Chermiti of theRangers (not pictured) during the Scottish Premiership match between theRangers and Celtic at Ibrox on March 01, 2026. (Photo by WM Sport Media/Getty Images)

Dane was thrown in against Stuttgart at the MHP Arena on Thursday night, and played his part as we earned a clean sheet in a 1-0 victory against the Bundesliga side, to record our first competitive victory on German soil.

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The 22 year old was then pitched into the cauldron of Ibrox due to the disgraceful suspension of Auston Trusty, and despite being culpable in the home side’s second goal, he put in an otherwise flawless performance.

26.02.2026, Stuttgart, VfB Stuttgart vs Celtic Glasgow, Europa League, MHP Arena, Playoffs, second leg e final whistle and shake-hands, Dane Murray Celtic Glasgow 47 , Ermedin Demirovic VfB Stuttgart 9 , VfB Stuttgart loses 0 1 against Celtic Glasgow, Photo IMAGO HMB Media/Hendrik Hamelau

Dane was rightly criticised for his part in the goal, but deserves great credit for not allowing it to affect him, as the home side looked like running riot.

The young centre back after all was justifiably questioned for his role in our defeat at Tynecastle a few months ago, something that most likely would have been weighing heavily on his mind, and he would have been forgiven for fearing the worst, but he showed great character and resilience to stick to the task in hand to play his part in our fantastic turnaround to rescue an ever so precious point.

I don’t believe Dane is a automatic first team pick when he have other key players available for selection in the centre of defence, but he’s slowly proving that he’s a valuable squad player who can be relied on when needed.

Dane Murray of Celtic celebrates scoring his team’s third goal during the Premier Sports League Cup match between Celtic and Falkirk at Celtic Park on August 15, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The challenge for Dane now is to show some consistency, starting tomorrow night at Pittodrie. With a tough run of fixtures on the horizon, we need all our players on the very top of their game.

Dane isn’t exactly a favourite in the eyes of some of our supporters, but if he can keep as focused as he has been in the last two fixtures, then he might well earn the respect of his critics, myself included.

The man that matters most is Martin O’Neill as he picks the team. Dane will start at Pittodrie tomorrow night and barring mishap will be in the starting XI at the weekend for the Scottish Cup quarter-final at Ibrox against theRangers. Those two games will go a very long way to providing an insight into whether Dane Murray is a viable option for a regular place in the Celtic team.

Over to you Dane!

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Celtic in the Thirties by Matt Corr. Click on image to order