Chris Sutton isn’t shy to mince his words when talking about Celtic.
On Sunday, as Celtic took on Kilmarnock at Rugby Park, the supporters were, either seeing new players for the first time, or still getting used to the new arrivals.
One of them included Michel-Ange Balikwisha, who made his Celtic debut at Ibrox before the September international break, and he didn’t impress during that drab goalless draw.
With a break in domestic action during this past fortnight, off-field noise taking over, and Balikwisha getting a few more training sessions under his belt, this was his chance to showcase to his new supporters what he has in his locker, but he fell flat on his face.
Michel-Ange Balikwisha is unveiled as a brand-new Celtic player
Credit: YouTube/Celtic TV Chris Sutton critical of Michel-Ange Balikwisha as Celtic beat Kilmarnock
It got so bad for Balikwisha that, at half-time, with the score 0-0, Chris Sutton wanted the versatile forward hooked off.
Speaking on Sky Sports Football (14/09/25), Sutton wanted Rodgers to ‘get him off’, and explained that he was seeing ‘nothing’ from the winger.
But just as Daizen Maeda opened the scoring for Celtic, Balikwisha was replaced by Rodgers for Forrest.
“We are used to seeing from Celtic, trademark Celtic,” said Sutton. “Hatate making those brilliant underlapping runs. Seeing a threat from the right-hand side.
“Balikwisha has offered nothing. Brendan Rodgers needs to get him off and get a threat on the right-hand side. Get Forrest on.”
58′ – Substitutions for Celtic:
🔛 Forrest & Tierney
↩ Balikwisha & Saracchi
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) September 14, 2025
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Balikwisha’s numbers for Celtic against Kilmarnock
What doesn’t help Balikwisha’s cause is that, whilst he has had a quiet start to his new club, the man on the other end made an instant impact.
Sebastian Tounekti was probably the best player on the pitch, as he looked lively on his debut and was constantly taking on his man, as well as beating him.
Whilst Tounekti was handed a rating of 7.31 by WhoScored, Balikwisha was rated at 6.37.
Shots: 0Key Passes: 1Passes: 25Passing accuracy: 88%Accurate crosses: 1Unsuccessful touches: 2Touches: 34Fouled: 1Rating: 6.37