Why is there always a place for Scott Brown in Celtic's midfield?

Sports writer

Tuesday 17 January 2012

There remains a tendency to be drawn to every outbreak of controversy, and a defiance that is expressed through aggression and posturing, but Scott Brown has re-established himself as the central figure in Celtic's midfield.

Neil Lennon is just the latest in a long line of managers to value Scott Brown's contribution

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Richard Wilson

Some of his team-mates might have been more prominent at times this season, and others are more adept at aspects of the game, but Neil Lennon is only the latest manager to consider Brown an essential figure.

Celtic supporters are still quick to grumble about Brown, unless he is involved in belittling or persecuting opponents. They make comparisons with Joe Ledley, a more accomplished passer, Victor Wanyama, a more imposing presence, Ki Sung-Yueng, a more creative player, Biram Kayal, a more all-rounded midfielder, and James Forrest, a more blistering talent, and find that Brown does not measure up.Lennon, though, cherishes him. As soon as Brown was fit enough to return to the starting line-up after nine weeks out with a recurrence of his ankle injury, the captain was restored to the midfield. Even if accommodations have to be made, the manager finds room for Brown. In his own mind, this is not an act of compromise for Lennon, since he recognises the unique qualities that the player brings, but he still has to find a way to integrate him.Mostly, this has been on the right of a midfield four, where Brown's hard running and forthright nature can still impose themselves, but allowing better suited players to fill the central positions. Brown craves a role infield, but is still able to inflict himself on the game. With Kayal injured and Ki having drifted out of the starting line-up, Ledley and Wanyama have begun to look like a well-balanced and effective central midfield partnership.While Forrest is recovering from a minor knock, there is little consternation for Lennon, but the winger's emergence as an attacking force this season, and his potential to develop into a leading player, means that he, too, will be a regular in the side. Yet, while any of the other midfielders might find themselves on the bench on occasion, Brown is all but guaranteed his place.Lennon relies on Brown because he sees the worth in the player's assertiveness, but also his energy and drive. Some of his touches are less refined than they might be, but even then Brown has improved in recent seasons. Craig Levein, the Scotland manager, remarked that the player's short passing has become sharper and more accurate, at the same time as his urge to hit long, ambitious deliveries has become subdued. There is also a greater awareness to his positioning and his understanding of the wider geometries of the game. Reduced to his most meaningful contributions, Brown is the driving force for Celtic, he sets the tone of the side's displays and provides momentum. When he was a young player breaking through at Hibernian, Bobby Williamson and Tony Mowbray – his first two managers – were captivated by his brazenness and his refusal to be intimidated. Lennon and Alan Thompson, the Celtic first-team coach, can both testify to the fierce assertiveness of Brown, having clashed with him during their own playing days.There is less rashness to his play now, but he has not relinquished any of that unabashed attitude. As the two teams lined up for kick-off at the last Old Firm match, Brown stood on the halfway line and stared balefully at Lee Wallace, Rangers' left midfielder. He has done the same to Gregg Wylde in previous meetings between the sides, and the sense is of a combatant standing his ground.Brown can still be culpable, and the way he became embroiled in a vocal feud with Hearts players following the 1-0 victory at Celtic Park month, after the Tynecastle side had missed a last-minute penalty, told of a nature that can still be impulsive. Yet team-mates and managers appreciate his hard-headedness. If a cause is to be fought over, Brown is seldom anywhere but at the forefront.Lennon, in the same way as Gordon Strachan, Levein, Mowbray and Walter Smith, who was keen to take him from Easter Road to Ibrox, likes Brown's attitude. He is still maturing as a player, but a greater tidiness in possession and more composure in the final third can be encouraged. His pace on the right allows the full-back behind him to overlap without worrying about the space left behind, but Brown can also surge infield, with or without the ball, to chance the pace of Celtic's attacks or to add his presence to the middle.At Hibs, Brown was most effective on the right of a midfield three, and a similar shape would work with the players Lennon chooses from. Forrest could still play a wide attacking role, while Wanyama and Ledley would provide the balance to Brown's furious spirit in the middle.Now married and the father of a young child, and having signed a long-term contract extension at Celtic Park, Brown is in a place of contentment. He is only 26, and is working under a manager who considers him so vital that he admits to seeing something of himself in the player. "There is more to Scott than just snarling," Lennon said recently. "He gives us more impetus in midfield."Supporters do not always acknowledge Brown's work, but those who work alongside him are never short of praise.

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Why is there always a place for Scott Brown in Celtic's midfield?

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