Arne Engels is trying too hard to get back into the Celtic team and needs to take a more relaxed approach.
That's the view of Parkhead hero Stiliyan Petrov, himself a former star of the midfield.
Engels, the club's record signing at an initial £11 million, finds himself out of the starting XI currently, with new signing Benjamin Nygren in there alongside Callum McGregor and Reo Hatate
The Belgian had a reasonable first season but now has work to do to get himself back into Brendan Rodgers' thoughts for his starting team.
Petrov has advised that when he gets his chance to come on, he needs to just let his football do the talking instead of being so anxious to impress.
He said: "Celtic just have enough quality in the middle of the park. There’s a lot of criticism about Engels. I kind of like him.
“I believe that he's trying too hard. I think he needs to be more relaxed.
“You have to believe in what he can do. When he came to Celtic, it seems like he was eager to show everyone what he can do. He's an important penalty taker. He was scoring important goals.
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“You can see his confidence was growing. At the moment, he's finding himself in a very difficult position. But in football, everything changes in a second. You have to believe in it. You have to be ready. When you have that opportunity, you just have to take it."
Portugual under-21s midfielder Paulo Bernardo is in a similar situation as he struggles to get into the strongest part of the Celtic side.
The pair have been urged to trust the process by Petrov.
“This is a problem in a big team," he added. "You have to wait for your turn. Callum McGregor, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren, they're playing really well.
“It looks like they're gelling together, they're playing well. It looks like they have a great understanding.
“Sometimes in a big club, you have to wait for your moment. Sometimes you have to wait a few games, sometimes a month, sometimes a few months. But you have to be ready when you're given the opportunity.
“It's down to the player if you want to compete, if you want to be part of that successful team.”
