By support

1st Jul, 2018 | 3:23pm

30y/o Celtic winger must overcome injury jinx or he will fall sharply down pecking order - view

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Celtic winger Jonny Hayes hasn’t had much luck since he joined the Hoops from Aberdeen for £1million last summer.

Not only did he suffer a season-ending leg injury on Boxing Day which curtailed his season, but he suffered a thigh injury in the Hoops’ most recent pre-season friendly.

Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers is hopeful, as quoted by the Herald, that the injury is ‘nothing too serious’ but for Hayes to have any chance of becoming a first-team regular he must stay fit.

Hayes has many players he has to try and overcome to get into the Hoops first-team, such as James Forrest and Scott Sinclair, and you can add to that recent arrival Lewis Morgan, who will be hoping to make his first-team breakthrough with the Bhoys in the season ahead.

There is no chance that the Hoops will sell Hayes, the 30-year-old still has much to offer if he can stay fit, but if he cannot overcome his injury jinx then he will be on the fringes of the squad when he is fit.

It really might be a make-or-break season for Hayes, who found it difficult to break into the team when he was fit last season.

If he is unable to make the Hoops side on a regular basis this season, it wouldn’t be that much of a shock if he moved on at the end of next season, with perhaps a return to Aberdeen on the cards.

That is mere speculation though, and Hayes and Rodgers will be hoping that the player has a big part to play in the months ahead.

In other Celtic news, Chris Sutton has given his view on rumours surrounding Kieran Tierney’s Hoops future

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