Celtic will be defending their League Cup crown when they take on Championship side Partick Thistle and their manager, Mark Wilson, with the winner advancing to the semi-final.
That penalty shootout defeat was a rare start for Bernardo in Celtic colours, as the Partick boss made some interesting comments about the midfielder after that game.
What Mark Wilson said about Paulo Bernardo ahead of Celtic’s trip to Partick Thistle
Bernardo first joined Celtic in 2023, before making that move permanent during the summer of 2024 when he joined from Benfica.
But back in May, Wilson told Clyde 1 that Celtic should never have signed the 23-year-old because he wasn’t worth ‘the risk and the money.’
Celtic ended up paying £3.5 million for Bernardo’s talents, and Wilson added that he is someone who is just ‘non-existent’ in the big matches.
“I have been quite consistent with Bernardo,” said Wilson in May.
“When it was up for debate, whether Celtic should sign him (after his loan spell). I was probably one of the ones who said, ‘no, I didn’t think it was worth the risk and the money.’ Not the risk, just the money.
“I didn’t think he had done enough in big games. I get he went through that wee purple patch. He scores against Rangers.
“But you need to be more than that if you are playing in that Celtic midfield. You need to be more than just three games on the bounce good, and then just go non-existent for big games like the cup final (against Aberdeen).”
Does Wilson have a point, or is Bernardo underappreciated?
The only way Bernardo can answer his critics is by producing in the big matches, and let’s see what happens this season because he is a bench player right now.
But given that Celtic can play a weaker side against Partick, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Portuguese midfielder starts, and it’s a chance for him to send a reminder to his manager, even though the opposition is Championship standard.
Whilst Wilson’s comments could come back to bite him because Bernardo could be the one to knock him out of the League Cup, it has to be questioned if he is right because the player’s career in Glasgow seems to be at a standstill.
Yes, he isn’t perhaps getting the minutes he would like, but is it because he’s underappreciated? Or, as Wilson put it, he just doesn’t make his mark enough when those really big games come about.
- Bernardo’s games for Celtic: 79
- Starts: 35
- 90 minutes completed: 8
- Minutes: 3,392
- Goals: 7
- Assists: 7
- Trophies: 4
