Opinion: £2.7m-rated star can hold his head high after Celtic defeat

It is fair to say that Celtic didn’t play well in the Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Rangers. Most of the team, which had been playing so well recently, had an off-day, and as a result the Hoops lost in extra time.

It could have been different if Cameron Carter-Vickers had scored to put the Hoops two goals ahead instead of hitting the bar, but he doesn’t deserve criticism for that miss, indeed he deserves lots of praise, as he was Celtic’s best player over the 120 minutes.

Carter-Vickers was rock solid for the Hoops in defence, and he should be proud of how he performed. There was one particular moment in extra time where Rangers looked certain to score, but he put his head in where it hurts to clear the ball away, a superb bit of defending.

The concern for the Hoops is that the on-loan Spurs man looked to have suffered an injury towards the end of the game, and that would be a real blow for the Bhoys if he was to miss any action in the last weeks of the season, as he has been such an important player for the team.

Hopefully any update on his injury this week is a positive one, as if he is out of action for any length of time, that would be a concern.

Carter-Vickers, who is rated at £2.7m by Transfermarkt, has been one of Celtic’s most important players this season. He and fellow centre-back Carl Starfelt have been key to Celtic’s form this season, and it shouldn’t be forgotten that despite the defeat at Hampden the Hoops look well-placed to go on and win the league title.

It remains to be seen if the 24-year-old will return to Celtic next season on a permanent basis, but his performances this season have been so good that the hope has to be that a deal can be done.

The player likely won’t be happy with his