Moussa and I would be a dream team for France
WITH their domination of Scottish football manifesting itself in the collection of 11 consecutive domestic trophies, regrets among Celtic supporters in the past four years are too few to mention.
Witnessed on only 11 occasions in season 2017-18, the partnership between Moussa Dembele and Odsonne Edouard falls squarely into the ‘what if?’ category.
That term was Dembele’s second and final one in a Celtic jersey. On account of niggling injuries, he scored 16 goals in 39 games, just half the total of the previous campaign.
The then-teenage Edouard claimed 11 strikes in 29 matches, showing enough promise to persuade Celtic to pay Paris SaintGerman £9million to make the arrangement permanent but not yet quite the supreme footballer we now see.
Yet, there is no question that on the rare occasion they combined, they did so to truly devastating effect. Dembele’s strength with his back to goal was the perfect compliment for his compatriot’s liking for running at defenders with the ball at his feet. Their understanding seemed telepathic.
In a recent interview to celebrate the clinching of nine in a row, the Lyon striker did not try to mask his annoyance at the precious few occasions he and Edouard were let loose on defences in Scotland.
But although that ship has sailed, Edouard believes the partnership can yet be reprised in another hue.
The delayed staging of Euro 2020 would seem like the perfect time to show it off to a wider audience.
‘I’m still close friends with Moussa and we talk a lot,’ explained Edouard. ‘I’m really happy for him that he’s done so well with Lyon.
‘I wouldn’t say it is a dream for us to play together for France one day — I would say it is definitely a target for us.’
Having taken the Under-21 international stage by storm, elevation to the full squad is Edouard’s next significant step.
With head coach Didier Deschamps able to call on talents like Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and Kylian Mbappe, this remains something of a quantum leap — one that even Dembele has yet to take.
Nonetheless, Edouard feels that featuring in next year’s pan European tournament is well within his grasp.
‘It is one of my objectives to get into the French team,’ he added. ‘Now that I have one more season to prove myself and perform well before the Euros, the delay could be a positive thing for me. It would be fantastic for me.’
When the klaxon sounded to signal the suspension of all football some 13 weeks ago, Celtic’s players scattered far and wide.
Like a band of intrepid explorers, they headed to Australia and Belgium, Croatia and the Ivory Coast, Norway, Israel and Poland, each man intent on making it home before lockdown prevented them from seeing their kith and kin.
As the scorer of 28 goals before the curtain came down, no one would have begrudged Edouard the luxury of an extended break back in France.
Yet, there in the shadow of the Campsie Fells, entirely through his own choice, Neil Lennon’s star man went through his paces.
A long way from the Parisian suburb of Bobigny, where he cut his teeth in the game. And certainly a long way from the age-old image of the badge-kissing, want-away star whose affection for his adopted city is more fake than a 30 bob watch.
At 22, Edouard has the world at his feet. No one doubts that Celtic will one day make a handsome return on the £9m they paid for his signature two years ago.
But if the player is agitating for that moment to arrive this summer, he certainly disguises it well. For the foreseeable future, he belongs to the green half of Glasgow.
‘It has been difficult for most people but I have kept busy and I’ve made sure I’ve been keeping fit,’ he reflected. ‘I’ve been doing a lot of running, for example. Luckily, one of my friends was here just before lockdown started, so I haven’t been on my own.
‘I’ve been speaking to my family back in France a lot through video conferences, but I’ve done that since I came to Celtic. I’ve been getting a lot of support.’
The curtailment of football back in March did no one any favours. Then 13 points clear at the top of the table and firing in all cylinders since the winter break, Lennon’s side were denied the chance to properly finish what they’d started.
The personal cost ran beyond being denied a title party in front of a packed house. Edouard needed just two more goals to break through the magical 30.
With eight league and at least one Scottish Cup match to come, it would have taken a brave man to bet against him doing just that.
But the overwhelming emotions on the season are not of regret but of fulfilment. He scored in the Champions League qualifiers, the Europa League proper, at Ibrox and Pittodrie.
He enhanced his reputation as a big-game player. No one did more to ensure the crown remains on Celtic’s head.
‘There were a lot of highlights for me during the season but the biggest one was winning the title for nine in a row,’ he added. ‘That’s the reason we play.’
Edouard was signed by Brendan Rodgers, whose estimation of his talent amounted to him describing the forward as one of the best young players in Europe.
When Lennon returned to the club last year, there was always the off chance that there wouldn’t be quite the same chemistry. Yet, if anything, Edouard has only improved.
‘The manager is a very, very good coach,’ said the Frenchman. ‘He is very demanding but brings the best out of the team.
‘He talks to me a lot, he guides me and he has been very good for my development as a player.’
Much more than his predecessor, Lennon gets the movie Celtic find themselves in.
The club will always be able to attract players like Edouard. But the plan will always to develop them, give them the shop window, sell them on for a handsome profit and go again.
Two years into a four-year deal, perhaps only the uncertainty caused by the pandemic will prevent Edouard moving on in this window.
But with the queue of would-be suitors reading like a who’s who of European football, the day will assuredly come when a deal that suits all parties will be struck.
‘It shows you are working hard and doing the right things,’ said Edouard. ‘It’s flattering. But I just concentrate on trying to play well for Celtic. That’s what I am focused on at the moment.’