Carl Starfelt reckons Celtic are in ideal squad shape to handle the intense rigours of a double-pronged attack at home and abroad. Ange Postecoglou’s squad are gearing up for the switch to two games a week as they tackle the Champions League and domestic affairs from the end of this month.
Celtic will have at least 20 matches before the World Cup shutdown in November due to the condensed nature of this term’s fixture list. Last season, Postecoglou struggled for periods during that late autumn and early winter spell with injuries to key stars and a lack of depth in the unit to adequately cover.
However, the boss has rectified the situation through the last two transfer windows and has plans to add more before the close of the current shopping opportunity. Starfelt was part of the core who had to battle through Euro and domestic commitments during the first-half of last term when the squad was, at times, left threadbare.
But the Swede believes it's a very different set of circumstances this time around as he explained: “For sure. I think we coped with it pretty well last season, even though we had a lot of injuries.
“But I think this season we are even better prepared. We know that it’s going to be a tough schedule and a tough competition in the Champions League as well. So we will need all the players. Also, we know that every season injuries will come. But now we can deal with it in a better way.”
Starfelt and the rest of the squad face a fight every week for places in the startling line-up and he added: “It’s good because it brings up the standard in training. We are not just 11 players who are really good. The whole squad is really good and the standard in training is really good.”
