Celtic have appointed a new chief scout to help scour the planet for more hidden gems in the transfer market. Since Ange Postecoglou and Mark Lawwell got to work at Parkhead, they have sourced the club some real talent from all over the world and it looks like the two men are ready to step up the recruitment process and scouting network once more.

One of the key features of Ange Postecoglou and his reign as Celtic boss so far, has been the ultimate turnaround in two we conduct our transfer business. No more waiting to the last day to see what nobody else wanted and what we could pick up cheap or on-loan from the English Premier League. No, today we are far more ahead of the curve than those dark days of transfer activity which saw us miss out on several home grown players too and countless more through bad strategy.

A report in Football Insider has relayed the fact that Joe Dudgeon has now been entrusted with the overseeing of all our scouts. Hailing from the City Group, the 32-year-old was once a Manchester United youth player and played alongside the likes of Paul Pogba. He’s spent years working with their city rivals however, in the Etihad Campus as schools coach, whilst also working in Abu Dhabi before switching to the scouting side of the game.

Until recently, the former Burnley, Hull City, and Carlise defender worked within the City Football Group at Melbourne City and New York City for the best part of three years, so is familiar with the practices and procedures which Lawwell and Postecoglou work within. Dudgeon also confirmed his departure from the CFG through his online CV, which describes his new position within Lennoxtown as ‘Lead First Team Scout’.

Postecoglou has repeatedly echoed the sentiment that he will go to places within the world market that others dare not tread. Asia seems to be a fertile ground for the Greek-Aussie, with the arrival of several imports from that side of the world who have blown the Celtic supporters away with their undeniable ability. Just this January he reiterated the belief that these markets are happy hunting grounds with an abundance of talent.”If you look at all the big leagues around the world, you’ll see Asian players. Not just from Japan but from Korea, from Australia, from Iran. There are some very good footballers on that side of the world. But if people don’t want to look there, I’m happy to be the only one.” It seems now that Joe Dudgeon will be tasked with finding the stars of tomorrow for the Hoops.

Paul Gillespie

Matthew Marr’s debut Celtic book – ‘The BOULD BHOYS – Glory to their name’ is published on Friday 24 March. Thanks to everyone who has ordered since we announced the book’s release date on Monday night via an interview with the author. Please note that all pre-ordered books will be personally signed by Matthew Marr and you can order below if you’d like a signed copy posted out to you 24 March.

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