Treble Treble winner urges misfiring Celtic summer recruit to embrace pressure amid goal scoring drought

Former Celtic winger Scott Sinclair believes Kasper Hogh must embrace the intense scrutiny that comes with leading the line at Parkhead.

The Danish striker arrived from Bodo/Glimt for a reported £11 million fee in the summer, but has so far managed just three goals for the Hoops. Those goals came in the form of a hat-trick against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park last month, leaving him without a goal in his subsequent appearances.

Sinclair acknowledged that Hogh is still adapting to the demands placed on Celtic’s main striker, particularly given the size of the transfer fee.

“I think that's what comes with the price tag,” Sinclair told STV Sport. “I think when you come in for that money, you've got to hit the ground running. And also, the fans expect you to be scoring every single week, not just now and then.”

Criticism deemed an inevitable part of life at Celtic

The former Hoops favourite explained that big-money arrivals are expected to make an immediate impact, with supporters demanding regular goals rather than occasional flashes of quality.

“This is the pressure of playing for Celtic,” he continued. “And when you're not scoring and not doing as well as the fans would like, they're going to let you know."

Sinclair pointed out that criticism is an inevitable part of life at Celtic when a forward is struggling to find the net. However, he remains confident that Hogh has the attributes to turn his fortunes around.

The ex-winger believes the striker is more than capable of silencing his doubters by continuing to create opportunities and contributing to Celtic’s results.

Sinclair added: "With his stature and the player he is, I'm sure he will override that and make sure he keeps scoring goals and keeps creating chances.

“The main thing is the team winning games, and if he can help that, I'm sure he'll get the fans back onside. But as I said, part and parcel of playing for the biggest team in Scotland, you're going to get the criticism.

“However, you've got to ride with it and make sure you perform every week.”

Senior players will reinforce derby importance

Celtic return to Parkhead this weekend looking to respond after a difficult week that brought a 3-0 defeat in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-final and a 3-1 loss to Ferencvaros in the Europa League.

Sinclair played alongside current Celtic stalwarts Callum McGregor, Kieran Tierney and James Forrest and reckons they will be the players reinforcing the importance of Sunday’s Premiership showdown.

Speaking to promote Saturday’s Ladbrokes Ayr Gold Cup, he said: “There are the guys that know how much it means. Even when you go into the city, out for dinner, for lunch, whatever, everyone’s a fan. Everyone loves football and it’s in the fans’ DNA how much it means to them.

“That’s why I say every single time it’s different from when I was playing down south to coming up here. When it comes to Sunday, everything’s forgotten. I think if Celtic win on Sunday, then they forget about everything else and they’ll probably forget about the 3-0 defeat the week before.

“Everyone just moves on and then they go for the title. If they don’t get a result, I think it’s going to be tough. The negativity will start, the confidence will start dropping. It’s a massive game to go into the international break to sort of regroup, have a rest and then go again. But I’m going to be tuning in and it’s going to be exciting.”

*The Scottish Football Social Club is presented by BetSBK.com | 18+ | Gamble Responsibly