James McCarthy tipped for Celtic turnaround as mentor insists he will make 'cynics eat their words' like Scott Brown

Billy Reid played the role of mentor as James McCarthy moved from boy to man.

The Brighton assistant boss admits it’s make-or-break time for his former protege.

And he has backed the Celtic midfielder to make fools of anyone who’s written him off.

Reid handed the 31-year-old a Hamilton debut at the age of just 15 and now a crossroads appears to be looming after a Premiership season in which he made only four starts.

Following a frustrating start to a four-year-deal as Ange Postecoglou’s first signing, McCarthy has yet to convince the Hoops fans he’s capable of holding down a midfield berth with the likes of Callum McGregor, Reo Hatate, Yosuke Ideguchi, and Matt O’Riley all vying for a spot.

The departures of Tom Rogic and Nir Bitton haven’t even opened an obvious first-team route for McCarthy.

But Reid is adamant the Republic of Ireland star will call on the same strength of character which carried him through his Accies auditions as a starry-eyed youth to reverse popular opinion.

He said: “James is in a position where he needs to prove himself all over again and show Celtic the player he can be.

“He’s been blighted by injuries in the latter part of his career but people forget that he had an incredible amount of senior appearances as a teenager and had huge demands placed on him.

“Those challenges were met head on and he not only showed his ability but also a huge character which he’ll need to call upon once again.

“But nobody needs to convince me he can still be a big success at Celtic.

“There will be some who have their doubts but if James can get minutes under his belt then I’d back him to make the cynics eat their words.

“Ange Postecoglou has a superb array of midfield players and it’s like anything in football,