There are problems at Celtic that I could happily spend an entire afternoon discussing, preferably with a large cup of tea and my English teacher’s red pen at the ready. Then there are problems that actually make me smile.

And after Celtic’s magnificent performance against Hearts, Martin O’Neill has one of those on his hands. Jota or Callum Osmand?

Experience or youthful aggression? Magic on the ball or the willingness to run at defenders and make their afternoon thoroughly miserable?

Let me be clear: I am delighted that Celtic have this decision to make. But having two talented players competing for the same position is one thing. Knowing how to use them properly is something else entirely.

Jota remains a wonderful footballer.

When he came onto the pitch against Hearts, there were moments when he reminded everyone exactly what he can do. His close control is excellent, he sees openings other players miss, and when he has the ball at his feet he is capable of producing the kind of football that makes you sit forward in your seat.

There is still magic there.

But there is also an important fact which Celtic cannot ignore.

Jota is not fully fit yet.

That is not criticism. Returning from a serious injury takes time, and rushing somebody back because we remember the player he was before the injury would be foolish. But football does not wait while somebody regains sharpness.

The opposition certainly does not.

And right now, myself and James think Jota could actually slow Celtic’s attacking play.

That does not make him a worse footballer than Osmand. It simply means that, at this particular moment, Osmand may offer Celtic something the team needs more urgently.

Against Hearts, that was obvious.

Osmand brought aggression, pace and directness. He wanted to run beyond defenders. He wanted to attack space. He wanted to make something happen before Hearts had the opportunity to settle themselves.

Sometimes football really is not as complicated as managers and their tactical whiteboards would have us believe. You put the right player in the right position, give him a job which suits his strengths and suddenly the opposition has a problem.

What a revolutionary concept!

Perhaps somebody should send a memo to every football club which has spent years trying to squeeze square pegs into round holes.

Osmand gave Celtic a different dimension.

He made the game faster.

And that matters because one of the biggest complaints supporters have had about Celtic recently is how predictable the attacking play has become.

Sideways passing. Slow possession. Players waiting for something to happen rather than making something happen. Against Hearts, Celtic attacked with purpose. Osmand was a major part of that.

Of course, one excellent performance does not suddenly make him the finished article.

I am an English teacher. I do not give somebody an A because they wrote one particularly good paragraph. Consistency matters. Osmand must prove he can keep doing it.

But he has given Martin O’Neill a very good reason to keep selecting him.

That is where this decision becomes important.

O’Neill cannot simply pick Jota because Jota is the bigger name. Football managers sometimes fall into that trap. They remember what a player can do at his best and convince themselves that reputation alone demands selection.

But the question should always be simpler.

What does Celtic need in this particular game? If Osmand gives Celtic greater intensity, more aggressive forward movement and a better fit for the way the team needs to attack right now, then he deserves meaningful minutes.

Not ten minutes at the end when the game has already changed. Not the occasional substitute appearance when everybody else is tired. A proper opportunity.

Meanwhile, Jota should be allowed to regain his fitness without being asked to immediately become the player he was before his injury.

There does not need to be a winner and loser here.

Celtic need both of them. Jota offers technical quality, creativity and imagination. Osmand offers pace, directness and aggression.

A good manager should be delighted by that. The challenge is knowing when to use each player.

But if Osmand keeps performing, O’Neill has to be brave enough to reward him, even if that means leaving one of the most popular and established players at the club on the bench.

Because Celtic should be a club where performances determine opportunities. Not reputations. That is the real lesson from the Hearts game.

The right player, in the right position, operating within the right system, can change everything. We have spent far too much time watching Celtic players being asked to perform roles that do not suit them and then wondering why the football looks laboured.

Osmand is not a natural winger, but he doesn’t have to be. He looks well suited to the role he played yesterday, and he confirmed that he has been working to adapt his game ever more to do it better. I love that.

He has come in, played naturally, attacked defenders and suddenly the whole thing looks different. We were a better team yesterday when he was on the pitch.

That is why tactics matter. That is why selection matters. And that is why managers must be willing to adapt.

Osmand does not need to become Jota. Jota does not need to become Osmand.

They are different footballers.

Good. That should be an advantage. If O’Neill manages this properly, Celtic do not have one solution on the left wing. They have two.

And after some of the problems Celtic supporters have had to endure recently, what a lovely problem that is.

My preference right now is straightforward. Give Osmand the minutes his performances deserve while Jota works towards full fitness.

Let competition improve both of them.

Let Jota earn his way back into the starting eleven by showing that he can bring his technical quality without sacrificing the speed and intensity Celtic suddenly rediscovered against Hearts.

And let Osmand know that playing well actually means something. Because the objective is not to keep everybody happy. It is to make Celtic better.

If Martin O’Neill gets that balance right, the left side of this Celtic team could become one of its greatest strengths.

Teacher’s final mark? A for the options available. The remaining marks depend entirely on Martin’s team selection.

The homework is simple: identify what each player does best, put him in a position to do it and have the courage to pick accordingly.

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