Celtic podcaster Paul John Dykes has recently aired some doubts over whether the return of Filip Benkovic would have been a good move for the Hoops.
Last week, it was reported by Sky Sports that the Bhoys were in talks to bring the Croatian defender back to Parkhead on loan from Leicester City.
It was claimed that Neil Lennon’s side had a preference for bringing the 23-year-old centre-back in on loan with an option to make the move permanent.
However, a report from the Daily Mail has explained that Benkovic will not be returning to Parkhead as he is going on a season-long loan to Belgian side OH Leuven.
During the latest episode of the A Celtic State of Mind podcast, though, Dykes aired his belief that a move for the Croatian may not have been a sensible idea anyway. (34:45)
He said: “Talking about his injuries, that was the biggest concern for me. He’s barely played since he left Celtic.
“I like him, I thought, for me, he was one of the guys [where] you just need to bring in a big Eastern Bloc defender that does the job and I think he did that but he also had a little bit of finesse.
“I think him and [Jozo] Simunovic, I always looked at those two and thought [those] two guys would have been a good partnership and [we] never really [saw] it.”
TIF Thoughts on what Paul John Dykes said about Filip Benkovic…
As can be seen in what the podcaster had to say, he believes that injuries and the number of games played since he left Celtic would have been the “biggest concern” with Benkovic.
However, Dykes did admit that he was a solid defender for the Hoops that also had some “finesse”.
Would you have liked to have seen Filip Benkovic return to Parkhead?
No, he's not good enough
Yes, he's a solid player
Certainly, when looking at the defender’s statistics, it is clear to see why the podcaster believed that his lack of game time was a possible concern.
Following the 2018/19 season with the Bhoys, Benkovic has made just 12 senior appearances, with only one of those coming this season (per Transfermarkt).
So, perhaps it may be a blessing in disguise that Neil Lennon’s side looks to have missed out on the Croatian as he was unlikely to arrive at Parkhead fully match fit.