Joe Hart could face Jablonec but James McCarthy left in Glasgow
The pair joined the Parkhead side on Tuesday
Last updated 4th Aug 2021
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou says new goalkeeper Joe Hart could be in line to make his debut in their Europa League qualifier against Jablonec.
The veteran stopper will be assessed ahead of taking on the Czech outfit and could be between the sticks if he shows up well.
Midfielder James McCarthy also signed on Tuesday but Postecoglou says the match will come too early for him.
The Celtic boss started with Vasilis Barkas in goal before switching to Scott Bain.
Hart could start ahead of both of them, but Postecoglou said: "In terms of Thursday, we'll have a look at it. He only literally met the team last evening.
"He has been training though. He's presented in good condition. He'll have his first training session with the team this afternoon. I'll make a decision after that.
"Look, I wouldn't gave brought him in if I did not think he could contribute to the team.
"With Scotty and Barky in particular, I just think they had a really tough year last year.
"Having someone like Joe around will help them as well because he's a player who's played at the highest level for a long time, he's experienced the ups and downs of football and I think having an experienced player like him around will also assist those two.
"The difference with James was he wasn't training at a club. He's been training on his own whereas Joe was training with Tottenham.
"So we made a decision to leave (McCarthy) back in Glasgow. He'll have a session today and tomorrow with our staff there and we'll have a look at him on Saturday.
"He's been working hard on his own and is keen to get started.''
The Parkhead side now have their eyes set on the Europa League group stages after being knocked out of Champions League qualifying by FC Midtjylland.
That was followed up by a 2-1 defeat to Hearts at Tynecastle in their Premiership opener.
Postecoglou says he is expecting another tough challenge: "Czech teams are always pretty well-organised, they are a big side, a physical side and I expect it to be a tough challenge.
"Every time you play away in Europe there are always unique circumstances you need to overcome and I am sure that will be the case for us. But we will try to maintain our focus on ourselves at the moment.
"Our football has been okay, it hasn't been brilliant, but it has been okay. We have had chances to win all the games so there is a real focus to keep improving but more importantly turning them into results.''