'Delighted' - McAvennie thrilled by what's happened at Celtic, 'phenomenal' player to flourish

Former Scotland and Celtic striker Frank McAvennie has backed Celtic left-back Greg Taylor to react positively to the signing of Alexandro Bernabei.

The Hoops confirmed the capture of Bernabei from Lanus on a five-year deal and the 21-year-old is expected to push Taylor for a regular starting berth in Ange Postecoglou’s side.

Last season, the 24-year-old Scot was a key figure for the Bhoys and ’embraced’ the new system under the Greek-Australian as the Scottish Premiership title returned to Celtic Park.

And one invested onlooker believes that Taylor will thrive under the pressure of being under scrutiny to keep his place in the first XI…

Speaking to Football Insider, ex-Hoops frontman McAvennie reacted to the confirmed transfer news of Bernabei’s arrival.

The 62-year-old said: “Juranovic came in at right-back and it totally transformed Anthony Ralston because he’s now got competition. Now Greg Taylor’s got competition. That’s only a good sign for Celtic.

“I can’t stress enough how important it is to have competition for places. If you’ve not got that then players can sometimes drop below standards. Through no fault of their own, it’s not that they want to, it’s just that if they’ve not got any competition they don’t have to play to as high a standard.

“Competition is great so I’m delighted the boy has confirmed and he’s coming in.”

A similarly attack-minded operator from left-back, Postecoglou won’t need to reinvent the wheel in order to give Bernabei opportunities – given the amount of football coming up, Celtic can only benefit from having additional options throughout the season.

During 2021/22, Taylor scored once and provided four assists in 35 appearances across all competitions for the Hoops – earning praise from