Sky Sports pundit and former Celtic player Davie Provan has called on chief executive Peter Lawwell to not panic buy after their heartbreaking exit from Champions League qualifying.
The Hoops dropped out of the competition after an aggregate defeat to AEK Athens amid controversy over the future of centre-back Dedryck Boyata, who refused to play.
Provan has now called on Lawwell to show restraint in the transfer market despite this blow, with the pundit believing that the damage has already been done by previous poor recruitment.
In a column for the Scottish Sun, Provan said: “Boyata has played Celts like a fiddle, stalling on a contract extension until he was calling all the shots. Now, he’ll either get his move to the continent or sign a pre-contract with another club in January. Checkmate.
“But the Belgian’s absence shouldn’t be allowed to mask the obvious. Celts are now making up the numbers in European competition. There’s no point in Lawwell panic buying ahead of a Europa League campaign.
“The damage caused by poor recruitment has already been done. No sense in opening the chequebook when the horse has already bolted.
“Makes you wonder where that leaves Rodgers, who will want to protect his own reputation. The recent salvo he fired at the board was telling.”
OPINION
Provan is pretty damning in his assessment of the situation at Celtic currently, and it is hard to argue with him in all honesty. The Hoops have been massively complacent in the transfer market this summer, and the previous poor recruitment that he points to is clear to see. The fact that such a huge furore has been made over this Boyata situation – with Rodgers clearly of the opinion that the Belgian is their best centre-back – illustrates exactly Provan’s point. Whatever they do in the market in the last 12 days or so, nothing will be able to cover the cracks that have been caused by their poor recruitment in the past, and this summer so far. What they must do as a matter of urgency is work out Boyata’s future, with that situation to continue being damaging unless a solution is found soon. Boyata and Rodgers have both claimed there is no issue, but that is clearly not true, and the faster it is resolved the better.