Why Brendan Rodgers has taken a shine to Stuart Armstrong
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Stuart Armstrong seems to have usurped Nir Bitton as Celtic’s third centre midfielder, alongside captain Scott Brown and the now undroppable Tom Rogic. The shift began during the last Old Firm game, when Armstrong’s energetic approach breathed new life into an attack slowed down by Bitton’s ponderous style. From there, he led a Celtic reserve XI in their 4-0 win over Ross County, including scoring the second goal, and showed enough in the narrow victory over Aberdeen to pacify any fears Brendan Rodgers may have had over sticking with him for the tussle with Borussia Monchengladbach last night.
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Hide AdArmstrong did not have a perfect evening, by any means. Even by his own occasionally wayward standards, he was slack in his passing, and while he broke forward a lot from midfield he was unable to make it count in the final third. However, his pressing, as part of a hard working Celtic midfield trio, helped throw Gladbach off their game and enabled the visitors to win the possession battle - 52 per cent to 48 per cent. Though he could have played better, he didn’t look out of his depth. It was enough to suggest the role is now his.
Brendan Rodgers believes his best position is at No.10. Far be it from this writer to tell the Celtic manager, someone with years of experience on the training ground and hours watching Armstrong, that he’s wrong, but if we’re looking ahead and trying to foresee the highest possible ceiling for the player’s career, it does appear he has a better chance to be the next Scott Brown rather than the next Tom Rogic.
In Scottish football, Armstrong is among the elite in terms of technical ability. In the Champions League, he’s firmly in the bottom half of a very long table. When Rogic exited against Manchester City, the drop off was evident. The Australian, with that ball-killing touch of his, looked comfortably at home among football’s elite. Armstrong, while his energy was an asset to the team, couldn’t replicate his team-mate’s subtlety.
Besides, playing him in an advanced role, where he’ll often be required to turn his back to goal to receive possession, negates what is evidently becoming his greatest strength: those galloping runs from deep. Similar to Brown, Armstrong will charge forward with the ball whenever space opens up in the centre of the park. Because of his strong physique, when he gets a head of steam going it’s very hard to stop him, even if an opponent manages to get in his way. It keeps Celtic’s attack going at a high tempo and forces opponents into covering more than they can handle. His athleticism also enables him to be a force defensively, as he can muscle others off the ball. Having been an attacking player all of his career, he does need to work on his concentration at the back, and not let opposing runners drift away from him. Though that will come with time and experience.
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Hide AdOn a personal level, it’s heartening to see Armstrong doing so well. From a Scottish perspective it’s good to see one of our own progressing to the extent he’ll soon merit national squad recognition. (Considering John McGinn remains in the squad despite a subpar start to 2016/17, he probably deserves it now.) But more so than that, Armstrong is just one of these footballers you can’t help but root for. He’s got an intelligence and self-awareness which enables him to recognise the importance of life outside of a football field, as evidenced by his studying for a law degree, while also remaining wholly committed to his craft, since it’s a vocation millions dream of but only a select few can do.
Rodgers made sure to mention Armstrong’s qualities as a human when asked about his abilities as a player last week - though he missed an opportunity to praise his midfielder’s magnificent hair. It must make coaching that little bit more pleasurable for a manager, when you’ve got an enthusiastic and attentive young player to mould as you see fit.
Whether it’s at the No.8 or No.10 spot, Armstrong’s future at Celtic Park, which once looked uncertain under Ronny Deila, now looks a lot brighter.