Fans sing Brendan’s here for 10 but will he be at Celts next year?
Future unclear as loan deals signal summer rebuild
IT’S no surprise all of these loan signings have got Celtic fans a little worried about the future.
They already have Filip Benkovic, Timothy Weah and Oliver Burke only at the club until the end of the season and there’s been talk about interest in Scott McTominay and James McCarthy on short-term deals.
But when you look at the entire Celtic squad right now, it’s clear there is going to be a massive rebuilding job next summer.
Brendan Rodgers has already said he’s not looking for a central-defender in this window, so that means he’ll need to recruit two right away for the European qualifiers, regardless of what competition they are in.
The loans will return to their parent clubs, Dedryck Boyata will leave and I am becoming more and more convinced this will be Scott Brown’s last season at Parkhead.
Mikael Lustig will probably go, I’d imagine Scott Sinclair’s future beyond this year is in doubt and Olivier Ntcham is likely to be sold at the end of the campaign, if not sooner. All of a sudden it looks like this Celtic team is coming to the end of its cycle. They’ll need half a new team. There is so much uncertainty about the side going forward, no wonder fans are left asking the biggest question of the lot – will Rodgers be around for the rebuilding work? I can understand the short-term thinking. There is a league to be won and Rangers have thrown down the gauntlet with Jermain Defoe and Steven Davis arriving. Defoe getting an 18-month deal is a bit of an eye-opener but then again, Kenny Miller is still banging in goals at 39, so there’s no reason he can’t keep playing as well. They are not looking to the long-term either by going down the Dad’s Army route but it’s clear they have gone all in to try to win the league this year.
The Premiership title is also Celtic’s be-all and end-all but you can’t help but look at the potential problems coming down the line and whether Rodgers will have the appetite to address them.
This Leicester City talk isn’t helping either. He neatly batted away questions regarding the chat in England he is being lined up to replace Claude Puel when he eventually gets the chop.
It’s an easy one to answer when the position is not vacant though. It will be more interesting to hear what Rodgers thinks about it when the curtain inevitably comes down on the Frenchman at the King Power Stadium.
I would be astonished if Rodgers jumped ship midway through the season but at the end of the campaign? That is a different matter.
Regardless of how the title race goes this year, there’s no way he would – or should – be sacked, so it will come down to him.
Celtic fans sing about Brendan being here
for 10 in a row but what they want to hear is their manager telling them he’ll be here to perform the massive job required in the summer.
He could put it to bed but we all know he won’t, because he is a quality manager and will get linked with a lot of jobs.
Sooner or later one will come up that could really tempt him.
There hasn’t been the same frustration from Rodgers we saw during the summer window. At least not in public.
But there must privately feel a similar tension at the difficulties he faces when it comes to recruitment.
Look, I actually have a lot of sympathy for Scottish clubs in the transfer market.
It’s brutally tough to compete with clubs in the English Championship never mind the Premier League.
It’s fine when you can bring in former players or old pals but in the general fight to land quality, there isn’t much room for clubs such as Celtic and Rangers to pick up a bargain.
We’re seeing even mediocre players in England going for mega money and picking up eyewatering wages.
Look at this story involving Callum Hudson-Odoi. He’s an 18-year-old kid and Chelsea are preparing to offer him 70 grand a week to fend off interest from Bayern Munich.
Scottish football just doesn’t have the finances – so it’s more important than ever to dig out talent from elsewhere and polish them up.
I understand the model at Celtic but it’s one thing polishing players up for your own team, these loan players will only help other sides benefit in the long-run.
The short-term deals just highlight the mistakes made during the last transfer window but it doesn’t do much help in giving them a head start in the next one.
We don’t know how the league is going to end up this season.
But the future beyond the final whistle is even more unclear.