SENTINELCELTS

He could have made a name for himself.
He had something, skill that all of us would love to have.
He was Scandinavian so the weather shouldnt deter.
Age was on his side, he had joined a massive club that liked skillful players, the world was his lobster,,,but as happens all too often upon these trips down memory lane, it didn’t work out that way.

For starters he joined in January viewed as a back-up to the then star striker and new managers marque signing, and he really was a back-up earning a meager 4 starts in the next 6 months despite netting the winner in only his second appearance off the bench. Starting solo or as one half of a partnership next season through good substitute performances looked a goer.
And it was,,,until the manager who signed him got sacked and the new one had different ideas.

The problem however, was that he actually was a good player, he simply wasn’t given a proper chance in The Hoops.
We honestly don’t know if he was worthy. And now we never will.

Our bhoy was skillful, technical, yet slighter than the average player from that region,,he almost reminds me of Kuhn, and perhaps he would have suited the right-hand role well ala Simon Donnelly who also came in as a striker initially. But he had a knack, something money cannot buy, that knack getting on the end of something, being in the thick of things, actually sticking the ball in the back of the net hence his 12 in 15 prior to January which persuaded the biscuit tin to be pried open.

Have you guessed who it is yet?

I recall him having enough knowhow to use movement to create space, trapping a long ball perfectly, he possessed game intelligence alongside proper dig, the will to win. Everytime I watched him I said to myself ‘he’ll do!’. But I can count the number of times I watched him on my hands, literally.

In fairness the new manager brought in a new couple who truly did form a good striking partnership, so it’s not as if his omission ever cost the team, that’s probably the reason why he’s almost forgotten, but it’s sad to see a good player overlooked, it’s never pleasant to witness a dream move go awry ala Shane Duffy.

One common thread running through nearly all the protagonists of this series is the simple fact they weren’t joining a good side, unable to find their feet in a settled playing system nor thrust in as the rookie but with ten other decent players to carry them through. Most saw major chop and change at Celtic, and I’ve gotta view that as a big reason most if not all failed to truly settle and earn accolades aside from being just memories on a blog now. I also cannot view his capture as simply ‘kissing a frog hoping for a prince to emerge’ for with his stats he was always going to earn a move and given our penchant for Scandinavian players (justified in my book) moving to Celtic looked like natural progression and a good choice for the lad.
His 6 months playing for the Hoops (and entire career) isn’t even enough for a full Wikipedia page, it’s so scant they may as well not have bothered.

But the history books don’t lie and from January 2010 until that years August, Morton Rasmussen was a Celtic striker.
We hardly knew ye, but you lived the dream, and should this reach you Morton, plenty of us felt you were a player.
You’ll Never Walk Alone.

By Mahe.
Ps, please leave any recommendations for this series below, although the next two are already selected.
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