Celtic News Round up - 19/07/21 - 24/07/21

Celtic news round up - Week beginning Monday 19th July

There weren’t as many incomings at Celtic this week but there was still a plethora of stories to report. Let’s launch into the latest news round up. 

Ange Postecoglou strengthened his Celtic side yet again this week with the signing of Carl Starfelt. The Swedish centre back signed a four year deal. It was reported by the Daily Record that the 26 year old arrived in London last Sunday and is currently self isolating. His situation is similar to that of Kyogo Furuhashi who is also isolating in the British Capital after flying in from Japan. The signing of Starfelt didn’t come as much of a surprise to Celtic fans though, minutes before Celtic officially announced the signing of the defender, Brentford publicised the capture Kristoffer Ajer on a five year deal. The fee was believed to be around £13.5 million which could rise with add ons. It seems Starfelt will be a direct replacement for the Norwegian however Celtic have been reportedly interested in other centre backs. Japanese international Ko Itakura is one of those according to the Daily Record as is Cameron Carter Vickers. American journalist Larry Henry Jr stated on Twitter “An update on Cameron Carter-Vickers, per a source close to the player. Both Celtic and Newcastle remain in talks with Tottenham over a deal and Spurs will received a sell-on clause in addition to a transfer fee”. Moritz Jenz was the final central defender to be linked this week. The Scottish Sun say Celtic have been alerted to the availability of the German who is also capable of playing right back. Bringing in Jenz could be a wise acquisition that could kill two birds with one stone. 

Sticking to right back and as well as Moritz Jenz, Sacha Boey, George Baldock, Aurelio Buta and Yan Couto have also been linked. Fabrizio Romano reported on Friday night regarding Boey that the Frenchman will join Galatasaray; “Galatasaray have reached an agreement with Rennes to sign Sacha Boey as new fullback. Permanent deal, contract until June 2025”. Negotiations with Celtic for the 20 year old broke down due to the presence of ‘foreign intermediaries’ according to L’Equipe. George Baldock is top of Celtic’s list for right backs as per the Daily Record however Anthony Joseph tweeted “Celtic are targeting Man City right-back Yan Couto for a potential loan. There’s interest from Portuguese clubs too”. As for Aurelio Buta, Celtic have reportedly bid €2.5 million for the 24 year old however Royal Antwerp want closer to €3.5 million, according to Turkish journalist Ekrem Konur. This was all after Ange Postecoglou said on Monday that Celtic have been ‘hesitant’ with some transfers. 

Celtic played their first competitive game of the season on Tuesday, drawing 1-1 with Midtjylland in the 1st leg of the 2nd qualifying round of the Champions League. Callum McGregor led out the Celtic team after he was announced as the club captain on Monday. Liel Abada got the opener before Nir Bitton was sent off for a second bookable offence. Evander equalised for the Danish side on the 66th minute after his teammate Anders Dreyer was sent off to even the playing field. As mentioned, the match finished in a 1-1 draw. In reaction to the result, Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou said his team will never be as unprepared for a game of that magnitude as they were on Tuesday evening. Celtic knew going into the match they would play either PSV Eindhoven or Galatasaray if they manage to defeat Midtjylland. In contrast, should the Hoops crash out, they will play Czech side FK Jablonec in the 3rd round of Europa League qualifiers. Vasilis Barkas was heavily criticised for Midtjylland’s goal on Tuesday evening. Many have called for a replacement for the Greek and former Celtic keeper Fraser Forster has rejected a new contract with Southampton as per The Scottish Sun. Current goalie Ross Doohan has been linked with a loan move to Tranmere after former Dundee United manager Micky Mellon took charge of the Rovers. 

As well as Kristoffer Ajer, Marian Shved completed a permanent Celtic exit this week, signing for Mechelen on a three year deal. The Ukrainian spent the 20/21 season on loan at the Belgian club. In terms of rumoured exits, there have been a few over the past couple of days; the most significant being over the potential departure of Odsonne Edouard. Ed Aarons of the guardian credited Crystal Palace with an interest in Edouard. The clubs new development coach, Saïd Aïgoun, worked with the 23 year old at PSG’s academy. However, the most concrete interested seems to be from Brighton. According to SportItalia, the Seagulls have bid £21.5 million for the Frenchman. There have been various players touted as Edouard’s replacement. One of those is Aaron Boupendza although Turkish outlet Fanatik say he is close to joining Fenerbache. French journalist Sebastien Denis claimed Celtic are interested in Rennes striker M’Biaye Niang. How tangible this is, I’m unsure however Denis did report on German player Ismail Jakobs move to AS Monaco. Keeping on the topic of strikers and Leigh Griffiths was back in training with Celtic on Monday after he was cleared of reportedly sending messages to a young girl. 

Going back to incoming transfers and Emilio Izaguirre has recommended Honduran midfielder Kervin Arriaga to Celtic. He said this in an interview with Diario Diez of his homeland. It was delightful to see Celtic fans back in the stadium on Tuesday evening. Celtic confirmed earlier in the week that 18,500 supporters would be allowed in for Sunday’s  6-2 defeat to West Ham and then 24,500 for the subsequent home game after that. 

I myself was at Celtic Park for Saturday’s friendly and I must say it was tremendous to see the Bhoys in the flesh for the first time in 16 months. Hopefully more and more supporters get the chance to return in the coming weeks. One thing is for sure though, West Ham’s victory highlights the need for certain positions to be strengthened going into consistent competitive action.