Auston Trusty has revealed he missed a chunk of Celtic’s gruelling festive calendar through illness.
Trusty had mysteriously fallen out of the picture after being hooked at half-time in last month’s Premier Sports Cup Final victory over Rangers – with Liam Scales being preferred alongside first-choice Cameron Carter-Vickers for the subsequent four matches. But the £6million stopper made a triumphant return to the Hoops’ backline on Sunday after netting his first goal for the club in the 3-0 dismantling of St Mirren.
Now, the USA international has cleared up his mystery absence by confirming that he had copped the sickly bug that had spread through the Parkhead dressing room like wildfire. “I wasn’t injured, I was just sick”, he told Celtic TV. “Whatever bug was flying around here or whatever was happening, I was ill and it took me out for a good couple of weeks and I didn’t feel right.
“It was just battling back from that. You don’t want to feel ill or be sick. But it showed a lot about the team – people can step in and do the job. I knew that once I got back into the right shape, I’d be welcomed back into the team and do my thing.”
While Brendan Rodgers slammed the Celtic songbook at the weekend as fans chanted Kieran Tierney’s name, the Green Brigade debuted another chant in honour of their American Bhoys CCV and Trusty. And the summer capture from Sheffield United capped off a memorable afternoon by breaking his goal duck for the Scottish champions, celebrating in front of the Hoops ultras.
He said: “It was good. I was trying to get a goal this whole time. It just meant the world to me and to also do it at Celtic Park and go to the fans and celebrate. There was a lot of passion and I’m just really happy.”
After a shaky showing at Ibrox by Scales, Trusty has nudged back in front of the Irish defender in the pecking order. But the 26-year-old welcomed the competition for a start in the backline, adding: “They [CCV and Scales] are both solid players. Being the new guy coming into the team, I’ve been impressed by everybody on and off the pitch. I can only speak highly of everybody.”
“I think this team has shown a lot of character. We’ve had lows in the past and we’ve been able to bounce back. So it’s just another one of those, we believe in ourselves to get back to doing what we do best. So when there’s downs, there’s also ups.”