What type of player would Celtic be getting in Mehdi Ghayedi?

Iranian journalist Hatam Shiralizadeh first broke the story on Monday morning that Celtic had had an official bid for young attacker Mehdi Ghayedi turned down by Shabab Al-Ahli Dubai FC. 

In the Twitter post, Shiralizadeh went on to state the Hoops are determined to sign the young talent and are set to return with another bid for the twenty three year old who plies his trade in the United Arab Emirates. 

Despite contrasting reports saying Shiralizadeh’s claims are ‘Not True’, the journalist has provided another update stating Celtic are looking to sign Ghayedi however the player is reportedly happy at his current club. 

Nevertheless, we’ve seen Ange Postecoglou work his magic in the transfer market thus far at Celtic and the Hoops have been no stranger to signing players from extravagant destinations recently; the addition of Ghayedi would be no different. 

As a result, I’ll be delving further into who exactly the Iranian is through the aid of the man who originally broke the story. 

We’ll look at the type of player Ghayedi is, his best position and the potential he has for further development. 

Before we get into the real substance of this article, I’d like to thank Hatam Shiralizadeh for taking the time to out of his day to answer my questions and provide further insight into Mehdi Ghayedi. Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @hatam_daddy1980.

I begun by asking Hatam what type of player Celtic will be getting should they land Mehdi Ghayedi to which he replied:

“He is a very fast, skillful, and talented player who can adapt himself tactically quickly. His transition in the pitch is fantastic. His only weakness is his physical side, but with his speed, he can destroy every defense line”

Clearly, these attributes are all the hallmarks of a player primed to play Celtic’s style of football under Ange Postecoglou, also known popularly among the fans as ‘Angeball’. 

Furthermore, a potential move for Ghayedi would emphasise the belief that the Australian is having a significant impact on Celtic’s transfer business, if it was not already plain. 

Next, I proceeded to ask what Ghayedi’s foremost position on the football pitch is. Hatam said: 

“He can play in every position in the attack line, but I think left-winger is the ideal and best position for him, where he can use his speed and skills at the same time to dribble [past] the opponent players and score goals like Lionel Messi from the corner of the box”

Throughout his career, the twenty three year old has played the majority of his matches at centre forward and left wing with 61 and 59 appearances in each position respectively. However, it appears left wing is where Ghayedi is best utilised. 

Jota has appeared to make this position his own since joining Celtic although the club are without significant back-up on the flanks. Mikey Johnston is well, Mikey Johnston, Daizen Maeda’s principal position looks to be through the middle and both James Forrest and Abada are right wingers. 

Therefore, a move for Ghayedi would seem logical for the reason of squad depth, especially with Celtic’s record with injuries in recent times. In addition, several players like Tom Rogic and Kyogo could possibly be missing in the coming weeks through International duty, to name but a few.

Finally, I wanted to know more about the room Ghayedi has for further development, should he make the move to Scotland. I was met with this response from Hatam:

“With the talent he has, I think he can grow more with work under Ange Postecoglou. He needs to understand European football mentality first, and Celtic can be a good place for him to improve more. Celtic can make a profit in the future if they invest in him”

We’ve already seen how Ange Postecoglou has been able to develop several young players in his time at Celtic so far; Jota and Anthony Ralston are some prime examples. Mehdi Ghayedi is another player who the fifty six year old could aid in evolving. 

This chance to help a relatively young player prosper is one we’ve seen Celtic provide countless times throughout the past decade. It also supplies the club with the opportunity to make significant profit from shrewd investments, like one in Ghayedi. 

In recent days however, Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has been rather boyish surrounding any potential incomings, stating:

“Unless something extraordinary comes along or something happens within the existing squad that means we need to move but as we speak right now, there is no other offers of people I’ve spoken to”

It appears the Hoops’ business, in terms of incomings at least, may already be done this January however we’ve seen in the past how Ange Postecoglou has been able to trivialise the media. Therefore, I wouldn’t be surprised to see one or two players bear the Celtic scarf above their head at Parkhead before the window slams shut on the 31st of January. 

Getting back to Mehdi Ghayedi and we’re still awaiting an update on that front. However, one thing is clear - Celtic’s interest in far-fetched markets signifies a change from the era of relying on loan deals in January to temporarily solve problems to a more forward thinking, sustainable approach. 

Thank you for reading this article and once again, great thanks to Hatam Shiralizadeh for providing me with great insight into Mehdi Ghayedi. If you have any thoughts or opinions, leave a comment below. Also don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @Josh_Footblog for more Celtic and Scottish football content.