Turning a negative into a positive is not easy, even for those of an optimistic disposition, but the two-game suspension that Alfredo Morelos is currently serving could see us come out the other side even better equipped for a title charge.
For a start, we have got ourselves into a great position with Morelos scoring just three league goals in 12 appearances, by this time last year he was approaching 30 across all competitions, when he does start firing teams are going to be in serious trouble – Sunday’s fixture against Dundee United is a perfect example, if El Bufalo has his best shooting boots on that could’ve been four or five quite easily.
There is also the opportunity to create a siege mentality, those of a certain age will remember Graeme Souness proclaiming that “no one likes us, we don’t care”, and with the disciplinary procedure apparently being able to start with an agenda and work back the way – when it suits them – it’s easy to see why people come to the conclusion that the powers that be are “out to get us”.
That we shut down the controversy immediately by accepting the ban is also telling, there was definite scope for appeal based on the referee’s claims and the subsequent charge for a new offence, it simply didn’t add up, there are also numerous examples of players being elbowed this season and not getting a red card.
Will Morelos come good?
Yes
No
By accepting the ban, we have moved on, there is no trial by media for the next couple of weeks or Celtic minded pundits analysing Morelos’s disciplinary record in poorly constructed columns in any paper that will have them.
An even bigger potential benefit is that the player himself gets a week or so out of the firing line, a mental break from the pressures of his recent lack of goals and time on the training pitch to get his confidence back – remember being told not to poke a bee hive with a stick as a kid? Morelos is the bee hive and the SPFL have just poked him, you were warned.