BRENDAN Rodgers, the Celtic manager, last night denied he will be taking a gamble playing Nir Bitton, the midfielder, out of position at centre half in the Champions League play-off against Astana.
Bitton is poised to start for the Scottish champions against their Kazakhstani rivals in the first leg of the play-off at Parkhead this evening in the absence of both Dedryck Boyata and Erik Sviatchenko.
The Israeli almost gifted Partick Thistle a last-minute penalty in a Ladbrokes Premier League match at Firhill on Friday night when he brought down opposition striker Miles Storey with a clumsy challenge inside his own area.
Rodgers, whose team will secure a place in the group stages of Europe’s premier club competition worth in excess of £30m if they overcome Astana, has been urged to play a specialist defender ahead of the 25-year-old.
However, the Northern Irishman stressed he has complete faith in Bitton despite his rash tackle on Storey and backed him to perform in what is sure to be an intense atmosphere inside Celtic Park.
“If it was a big gamble I wouldn’t do it,” he said. “I have taken risks all my life and nine times out of 10 they pay off. For me, it is not a risk.
“You are also looking at the game. If you am playing against a team who are totally bombarding you with high balls and direct balls and you are away from home, then maybe you think differently.
“But you also have to think of the level of the game. You want to put young players, but you don’t want to hurt them either because these are pressure games. Experience can get you though.
“OK, it might not be perfect playing Nir there, but he has got a good idea of what he is doing, he has got the right profile, he will go and attack it, he will head it and he can play football. I don’t see it as a risk.
“I will take risks, but they will always be calculated. I would never just sit down and say let’s play him in there because he is tall. There is a certain dynamic to it and he has done it very well.”
Rodgers added: “Since I’ve been here all the centre halves have been questioned and all the midfield players have been questioned, but the facts are simple. We’ve played seven competitive games and we’ve conceded one goal and we’ve hardly given away any opportunities.
“We’re not perfect by any means but I think he’s done brilliantly in terms of how we work and how we play. He’s gone into a game against Rosenborg away, in a pressure game and he’s coped really well with (Nicklas) Bendtner, a player who, on his day is a very good striker.”
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