“It opens the door and gives an opportunity to someone else,” Brendan Rodgers | OneFootball

We knew there would be pain after the gain. Even post-match the manager seemed sure both Kel Iheanacho and Alistair Johnston were out with hamstring injuries, a quick recurrence in Johnston’s case, a tough one to take after pushing to get him back on the pitch…

Cameron Carter-Vickers of Celtic on the ground with suspected injury at full-time. Final score Celtic 2 Sturm Graz 1. Celtic v Sturm Graz, UEFA Europa League, Group Stage, Celtic Park, 23 October 2025. Photo Stuart Wallace IMAGO/Shutterstock

We also knew Cameron Carter-Vickers needed help leaving the field, but we still held out hope in the absence of any comment. Maybe it was a precaution. Maybe tightness. Maybe nothing more serious than fatigue after a demanding run of games.

Now Brendan Rodgers has confirmed the worst. Speaking to Sky Sports this morning he said Carter-Vickers has likely suffered an Achilles injury and faces three to five months out – “He looks like he’s done his Achilles, which can be anywhere between three and five months,” said Rodgers. “We’re just awaiting confirmation of that, but it’s not great news. But we’ll see where that one goes. Cam’s been a very important member of the squad, of course, and he’s been a great centre-half for the club, but what I always think it does is it opens the door and gives an opportunity to someone else.”

It’s a blow, and a heavy one at that. For a squad who would have woken up buzzing after last night’s performance, this is exactly the sort of news that can cut through team optimism, supporters too. The nature of football rarely allows a high to last uninterrupted, but this one stings.

So yes, three to five months is big. It perhaps takes us into March, and it takes us through key domestic fixtures, through Europe, through the winter run where titles, as we all know, can be shaped.

That said, Rodgers’ message alongside the bad news wasn’t defeatist. “What I always think it does is it opens the door and gives an opportunity to someone else,” he said.

Liam Scales of Celtic celebrates with Colby Donovan of Celtic after scoring to tie the game 1-1. Celtic v Sturm Graz, UEFA Europa League, Group Stage, Celtic Park, 23 October 2025. Photo Stuart Wallace IMAGO/Shutterstock

And he pointed directly to Liam Scales as proof, a player few expected to become central and now one of the first names on the team sheet. “That opportunity came to Liam Scales, and he’s been brilliant in my time here.”

Scales has already taken his chance. Now someone else will need to put their hand up alongside him. The question becomes – who?

Auston Trusty of Celtic arrives at the stadium prior to the UEFA Europa League 2025/26 League Phase MD3 match between Celtic FC and SK Sturm Graz at Celtic Park on October 23, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Auston Trusty is back in training. Last season, he and Scales played some big games together, including the goalless draw in Bergamo against Atalanta, a performance built on discipline, bravery and communication.

In football, it’s always been assumed you pair a right-footer with a left-footer, and two right footers is a regular occurrence. But while left-footers partnering isn’t unheard of, it is less common. What matters is cohesion, reading of the game, and understanding each other. Trusty then, if fully fit, is probably the natural first choice.

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)

But this is also a moment where younger players will feel the door is perhaps cracked open. Dane Murray will believe this is exactly the chance he has been waiting for. Manchester City loanee Simpson-Pusey, highly thought of by Guardiola, but seemingly overlooked by Rodgers, will also know opportunities like this don’t come often. These are the moments where squad players either continue to wait, or step up and become established.

Jahmai Simpson-Pusey signs for Celtic on a season long loan from Manchester City. Photo Celtic FC

Whoever is picked, the step up is enormous. Big boots to fill and all that. But this is the nature of the game. Crisis for one is opportunity for another.

Carter-Vickers will be missed, of course he will. We can but hope his recovery is quicker than first thought, and wish him all the best, because you don’t lose a player like that and simply shrug it off.

But Celtic could not have asked for a better foundation to handle the blow than the one they laid last night. The side showed they can create chances again. They showed they can score again. They showed they can play with assertiveness rather than hesitation. That matters, especially now, when the instinct would be to be concerned, even panic somewhat.

The key now to not to let the absence dictate the mentality. And someone, be that Trusty, Murray or Simpson-Pusey, needs to step into the space and treat it not as a burden, but as a platform.

Niall J

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Celtic in the Eighties and Willie Fernie – Putting on the Style both by David Potter. Photo The Celtic Star

Danny McGrain signing copies of Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter. Photo: Celtic Star Books

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