Celtic’s Luis Palma has been limited to 36 minutes from two games this season. Brendan Rodgers even left him on the bench for the last two league games.
The winger started in Honduras’ two games against Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica in the Concacaf Nations League fixtures this month. He registered an assist in their 4-0 win against the former.
El Heraldo reports the Celtic star was one of the most criticised players after his national team’s defeat to Jamaica on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old played the full 90 minutes, and the website says he wasn’t at his best against Jamaica.
Palma’s performance was highlighted by his country’s sports media. Former Honduras internationals Eduardo Bennett and Nerlin Membreño shared their views on the Celtic player’s disappointment against the Caribbean nation.
Bennett operated as a striker for Honduras between 1991 and 2000. He’s of the belief there’s a lot of expectations around the Celtic attacker.
“You want him to score goals, he’s not 9, he’s not a goalscorer, he’s a 7 who on the left overflows and assists,” he said.
“What I’m going to demand of Palma is that he has to overflow and face the ball, make a difference on the flanks, get past his opponents and assist the attackers. I can’t give him the responsibility of defining games,”
Membreño, on the other hand, has given advice to his compatriot on the areas he needs to focus on to further improve his game.
“Sometimes we overestimate the individual capabilities of the players,” Membreño explained.
“He plays well, he is a good player, with a good level and in a team that participates in the Champions League. He is going to grow, for now he has to define his efficiency in the game and that is where he needs to be. To say that Palma is above the rest, not yet. If he plays Champions League matches, much more is expected of him.”
