Every confirmed arrival, departure, and loan move from Celtic’s 2025/26 season – tracked, assessed, and updated in one place.
It has been a season of genuine upheaval at Parkhead, both on and off the pitch. Wilfried Nancy’s tenure ended with a whimper, Martin O’Neill has returned to the dugout in an interim capacity for the second time in his life, and the squad has been reshaped around a clear net-profit philosophy that has drawn mixed reactions from the support. Let’s go through everything, window by window.
Summer 2025 – Signings In
Kieran Tierney – Free transfer from Arsenal. You already know what this one means. The boy from Muirhouse, back where he belongs on a free from the Emirates. Rodgers knew what he was getting: a player whose heart has always been green and white, and whose quality at left-back – when fit – remains well above what we could realistically have afforded otherwise. A free transfer for a player of this calibre and emotional connection is just brilliant business, full stop.
Kelechi Iheanacho – Free transfer from Sevilla. An experienced Nigeria international with Champions League pedigree picking up a free transfer – I’d call that an ambitious gamble that has the feel of a Rodgers special. Whether he fires or fades, the risk-reward on a free is hard to argue with.
Sebastian Tounekti – £5.2 million from Hammarby. The one that arrived on deadline day with hearts in mouths, as they always do. The Tunisian wide man represents our most significant outlay of the summer, and at £5.2m there’s genuine resale logic baked in if he develops as hoped. A careful look at our recruitment strategy this summer shows a clear pattern: youth, versatility, and upside. Tounekti fits that profile neatly.
Benjamin Nygren – £2 million from FC Nordsjælland. The Swede arrives with a reputation as a technically sharp, versatile forward who knows how to play out of tight spaces. Two million for a player of his age and profile out of the Danish league feels like sensible business, and Nordsjælland have form for developing players who go on to do damage at a higher level.
Shin Yamada – £1.5 million from Kawasaki Frontale. Our second Japanese recruit of the window alongside Hayato Inamura, Yamada adds further depth and taps into a market we clearly rate highly. A combined spend of around £1.75m for both players tells you this is measured, low-risk recruitment.
Ross Doohan – Free from Aberdeen. Solid Scottish goalkeeping cover signed on a free. Pragmatic, sensible, no drama. Exactly what you want from a backup ‘keeper deal.
Jahmai Simpson-Pusey – Season-long loan from Manchester City. A highly-rated young defender from the City academy arriving with a serious reputation. Loan business like this, where we get genuine quality without the fee, is the kind of smart work that keeps our development pipeline stocked without breaking the budget.
Callum Osmand – Development compensation from Fulham. Isaac English – Signed from Greenock Morton. Both academy-level additions that speak to the longer-term vision. Keeping our best players and supplementing with hungry young talent is the model, and these two fit that philosophy perfectly.
Summer 2025 – Departures
Nicolas Kühn – £17 million to Como. Let’s be honest – this one stings. Kühn had become a genuine fan favourite, an electric presence on that left flank, and losing him to a freshly-moneyed Serie A outfit hurts. But £17 million for a player we developed? The board won’t apologise for that, and financially you can understand why.
Adam Idah – Departed to Swansea City. After the drama of his big-money interest and his eventual return from Norwich, this ending feels flat. The Irishman never quite nailed down the leading role we hoped he would, and a Championship move at this stage of his career feels like a reset he probably needs.
Gustaf Lagerbielke – £2 million to Braga. A defender who never truly convinced in the Hoops, and one whose exit frees up both wages and a squad place. The £2m is a decent return. No great loss, let’s be real.
Greg Taylor – Free to PAOK. The dependable Ayrshire lad, a fan favourite in his own right, gets a move to Greek football to kickstart a new chapter. Wish him nothing but well. Scott Bain – Free to Falkirk. Career winds down at his hometown club. Fair enough. Maik Nawrocki – Loan to Hannover 96. Never really got going here. Luis Palma – Loan to Lech Poznań. A winger who promised more than he delivered. Kwon – Permanent departure to Nantes.
January 2026 – In and Out
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – Free transfer from Beşiktaş. Now here’s a name that raised more than a few eyebrows. The former Arsenal and Liverpool man, written off by many after injury-ravaged years in England, has clearly rebuilt himself in Turkey and O’Neill clearly fancies him as an experienced midfield option. He’s featured twelve times in the league with a couple of goals – not a squad filler, then. I’d say this one is quietly working out.
Julian Araujo – Loan from Bournemouth. The Mexico international, who was previously on Barcelona’s books, has settled in impressively at right-back with thirteen league appearances and a goal to his name already. If he keeps this up, there will be a conversation to be had about something more permanent – and Celtic’s recruitment team clearly has an eye for the international market right now.
Tomas Cvancara – Loan from Borussia Mönchengladbach. A Czech international striker on loan from the Bundesliga is exactly the kind of temporary fix O’Neill needed up front. A loan, so no long-term commitment – but if he bangs in goals between now and May, the conversation about something permanent writes itself.
O’Neill was characteristically dry when asked about his January ambitions, telling reporters: “We need the players in and as quickly as possible. I would be hoping for it [to be busy]– but if the board were to listen to me then we would have about 56 players. It’s a difficult window in terms of buying players.”
On the way out in January, Hayato Inamura headed to FC Tokyo on loan – a quick return east after arriving only in the summer. Shin Yamada followed him out the door temporarily, heading to Preussen Münster. Johnny Kenny went to Bolton Wanderers on loan, Stephen Welsh to Motherwell, and Andrew Kyle to East Kilbride. Junior Adamu, Benjamin Arthur, and Joel Mvuka all came in on loan to provide cover across the forward positions.
Taken together, this is a squad in transition – financially disciplined, heavy on loan volume, and managing a period of genuine instability in the dugout. The bones are good. Whether O’Neill or whoever succeeds him can build something coherent from this group before the summer remains the big question. Mon The Hoops.