Celtic academy chief Chris McCart has revealed he is hoping to find a way to further the development of the clubs starlets after seeing their plans for a second team in the lower leagues rebuffed.
The Hoops are one of a number of sides said to be looking at leaving the reserve system in Scotland for next season, with the feeling that it is not offering young talent the quality needed to help them develop.
Speaking of the club’s plans, McCart, head of youth development at Parkhead, said that a Colt team in League Two had been turned down and so alternatives were being looked at.
He told the Daily Record: “We are trying to improve and bridge the gap between the reserves and the top team. We wanted to create a Colt team in the lower leagues but that was knocked back. So now we are looking at other ideas. About half-a-dozen teams are looking at how we can develop and stretch the ability of our young players.
“Some of them right now might not be good enough for the first team on a regular basis but they have outgrown the Under-20s. We have all put players out on loan which is great but you don’t have the same care or control over these players if they were at your club.
“We are looking at how we can improve the structure so it is better for the young players. You look at our stats and they are fantastic. In December we had five or six academy players starting our games. There are demands over the season and our players need to be at a certain level to sustain it. That is the biggest challenge to us.”
Opinion
As McCart says, Celtic’s youth academy has produced some first team quality talent in recent years, James Forrest perhaps chief among those to make that step up in Glasgow. However, it seems as though the club have lost faith in the SFA’s system and are looking for ways to further develop their youngsters to make sure they hit their full potential. It is a gamble but one which seemed to pay off for Rangers over the last couple of seasons, the Gers taking on European sides on a regular basis instead of being limited to taking part in a Scottish youth league. Celtic will have some of the top young talent in Scotland on their books but if they are not being tested every week they are never going to make the grade at the top level. You can understand why they were keen on getting a youth team set up in the lower leagues, giving them experience against established sides, and replicating that will be difficult to achieve.