Shane Duffy’s Celtic return explained after Kris Boyd questions club’s stance on defender ‘leaving bubble’
Duffy #Duffy
Gavin Strachan has revealed Shane Duffy recorded a negative test before returning to Celtic’s squad.
Pundit Kris Boyd questioned why the centre-back had been picked to start against Hibs after assistant boss John Kennedy ruled him out.
Kennedy said on Saturday that Duffy would be unable to play in the Monday night fixture after leaving Celtic ‘s Dubai bubble to return to the UK for personal reasons.
His words ensured some confusion when the Ireland international was named in a depleted Hoops side but Strachan, taking the team in Neil Lennon’s isolation absence, has moved to clarify the situation.
He told Sky Sports: “Yeah, he comes back off the back of a negative test.
“So, he’s back in and ready to go.”
Strachan’s reply ahead of kick-off followed Boyd posing the question in the pre-match studio.
He said: “I’m going to read something out, and it’s a worry – these are Celtic’s own words.
“‘Shane Duffy had a couple of personal things he had to leave Dubai for. Following the Covid protocols, he’ll have to miss the Hibs game because he left the club’s bubble. From then on, he will be in our thoughts for games but we’ll just have to give him time to sort things out.’
“He’s playing tonight!”
Celtic are without 13 first team players after they were ordered into self-isolation following Christopher Jullien’s positive test.
It means the Premiership champions are without big guns such as Odsonne Edouard, Kristoffer Ajer and Ryan Christie.