Celtic boss Ronny Deila has stated that Emilio Izaguirre has a future at the club, despite the left-back losing his place to youngster Kieran Tierney.
The Honduras international, who joined the Hoops from Motagua in 2010, has struggled for game time in recent weeks, owing to academy graduate Tierney thriving under Deila.
It was reported in some corners that Izaguirre is considering quitting the Scottish giants after the end of the season after falling down the pecking order at Celtic Park.
But Deila, who poured praise on Tierney’s impressive performances, explained that Celtic want to keep hold of Izaguirre beyond the season.
"Of course he has [a future here]”, Deila told a pre-match press conference, when asked if Izaguirre has a future at Celtic.
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“We can't have one full-back. He is a great player, but there is very tough competition on that side.
“Everyone can see what Kieran Tierney has done but everyone respects what Emilio has done.
"We know we have two very good full-backs so he [Izaguirre] is a player we want to keep.”
Izaguirre, whose present contract with Celtic runs until 2017, has scored twice and set up three goals in 23 appearances in all competitions for the club in the present campaign, while in total he has turned out 232 times for the Bhoys, scoring five times and providing 45 assists.
The 29-year-old also has 78 caps and a goal for Honduras to his name.