Maik Nawrocki was part of a handful of players who were loaned out by Celtic this summer.
It wasn’t a surprise given Nawrocki’s lack of chances under Brendan Rodgers, as he joined German second-tier side Hannover 96 on a season-long loan deal.
The one thing the 24-year-old would have been hoping for is to be able to see the pitch on a regular basis because he has been sitting on the bench for far too long.
But life in Hannover hasn’t started the way the Celtic loanee would have liked, until the September international break provided him with some light.
Photo By Piaras Ó MÃdheach/Sportsfile via Getty ImagesMaik Nawrocki features in Hannover 96 friendly during the international break
Nawrocki is yet to make his official Hannover 96 debut, even though the season has well and truly started, but it’s because of injury.
It would have been a sense of Déjà vu for the centre-back because he would have gone from hardly playing for Celtic to then doing the same with his new side.
But, during the international break, Hannover 96 played a friendly encounter against newly-promoted Hamburger SV, winning 3-1, and Nawrocki earned himself some valuable minutes.
The Polish defender played 45 minutes before being subbed off at half-time, and now he will be hoping it’s the start of a chapter that allows him to earn a regular run of games because he needs it.
Nawrocki’s minutes and starts for Celtic
There will be some who feel that Nawrocki should have stayed at Celtic, especially given the noise around Liam Scales and Auston Trusty.
But Scales has made an outstanding start to the season, whilst Trusty has been injured, and loanee Jahmai Simpson-Pusey hasn’t been selected for the Europa League squad, which is rather odd, and you have to question why on earth he was signed in the first place.
Simpson-Pusey, albeit on loan from Manchester City, will be hoping he isn’t treated like Nawrocki, where he hardly plays and, at times, doesn’t even feature in matchday squads.
Nawrocki’s games for Celtic: 18Starts: 12Minutes: 1,081