Celtic’s summer transfer business may have been modest but the targeted objectives were achieved and Neil Lennon will be content with the squad he has to work with this season. Peter Lawwell, meanwhile, will be delighted to see a net profit in the region of £3m from this window’s deals.
A long term goalkeeping solution was sorted out in an early deal that brought Fraser Forster to the club on a permanent basis. The Geordie, who spent the previous two seasons on loan at Parkhead, took some time to win over the Celtic faithful but the 24 year old is now delivering the sorts of performances that have put him on England manager Roy Hodgson’s radar.
Despite having Forster secured as his undisputed number one and Pole Lukasz Zaluska as an able deputy, Lennon felt the position needed extra cover and dealt in Lubos Kamenar on a loan deal, with an option to buy, from Nantes. However, the 25 year old Slovak may find even a place on the bench hard to come by. Indeed, the necessity of having three senior goalkeepers is questionable.
The other areas of the squad that craved additions were centre back and centre forward, and Celtic addressed those with the signings of Efe Ambrose, Nicolás “Miku” Fedor and Lassad Nouioui.
Defender Efe Ambrose, 23, has 14 caps for Nigeria and it will be hoped he can be the quick, commanding centre back that the supporters have been crying out for for far too long now. Neil Lennon was pleased to get his man and trusts he will be add strength to the heart of the defence.
Up front Celtic required some more firepower and different options, especially with Anthony Stokes’ injury and Giorgios Samaras playing mainly as a winger now. In Miku and Lassad, Celtic have acquired two strikers (the former on a loan with an option to buy) who both measure in at over six feet, so it is fair to assume what sort of extra dimension Lennon was looking to boost his attack with.
Both forwards arrive having achieved decent goal returns in Spanish football last season, and will, at least, provide competition for Gary Hooper and ensure that the Englishman is not relied upon too heavily.
The success of Celtic’s transfer window may also be judged on who did and didn’t leave the club. The sale of Ki Sung Yeung, who had fallen down the midfield pecking order, to Swansea for around £6m represents good business and more than offsets the cost of all the incoming transfers.
A host of other departures saw the squad receive a much needed pruning. Long term forgotten men Morten Rasmussen and Efraín Juárez left the club permanently and a number of fringe players were moved on. A total of 13 players headed for the exit, in addition to a further four leaving on loan.
Crucially Celtic have held on to all of their key players, and that is often one of the most pleasing facets of a transfer window for clubs with restricted finances. Victor Wanyama was continually linked with a move to the English Premier League latterly in the window but the young Kenyan, who has become a vital cog for Celtic since joining last summer, remains in Glasgow.
The difficulty of assessing any club’s transfer window is that its success rests upon the impact the new arrivals make. In Celtic’s case, few supporters will know too much about the new Bhoys – with the exception of Fraser Forster of course. It is impossible to know for certain, for example, if Miku will set the SPL alight or flop like Mo Bangura. Will Ambrose be the answer to Parkhead prayers or another bombscare like Majstorovic or Loovens?
What we can say, though, is that Celtic have come out of the window stronger than they entered it. A lack of cover at left back could be pointed to as a weakness but on the whole, with a young and improving squad and new talent emerging from the academy, the Bhoys are in a good position.
The days of glamour, big-money signings are all but gone in the world of the SPL but in the absence of the spectacular, Celtic’s transfer window has been effective.
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Good article and spot on. Of course time will tell about our signings but 2 strikers entering their prime and coming off the back of a decent season seems like common sense signings and playing it quite safe which in this case was required so well done Lennon.
Hopefully bhig Efe can attack the ball but more importantly pass it.
Celtic have many utility players in the form of Mulgrew, Ledley, Wanyama, Sammy and Commons so I don’t think any position hasn’t been considered with regard to the above mentioned left back area perhaps being neglected. Both Mulgrew and Ledley will do the business there if required plus 1 of the Tzarwzik (spelling) bros is more than able I believe.
Good times for the Hoops and plenty more to come one feels when this squad really matures and blossoms.
HH 1NL YNWA
Cheers Jhimmy. Good point about the age of the new strikers. A lot of the Celtic squad is under 25 so it’s good to have a few in the 25-30 bracket to try to get a decent blend.
Can’t say I disagree with anything yo’ve said there Andrew. I think “effective” is the key word when Celtic’s scouting system has been tasked with bringing in promising talent with potential sell on values. Udinese, Porto, Benfica, Ajax have been doing this for years to great effect and have flourished as a result. Like it or not Celtic must find rough diamonds and turn them into the finished article and sell them on for a healthy profit. The pressure of having to win week in, week out plus Champions League football should facilitate that if our youngsters make an impact on the big stages.
I hop