Celtic make enquiries about two centre-backs, Gustaf Lagerbielke and Xavier Mbuyamba

Celtic have made enquiries for TWO centre-backs as the Scottish Champions look to replace Carl Starfelt, according to a report on Sky Sports this morning. Enquiries have been made for Swedish side Elfsborg’s Gustaf Lagerbielke and Dutch side Volendam’s Xavier Mbuyamba.

The report also confirms that Celtic are further down the road with regard to signing the 23 year old Sweden international Gustaf Lagerbielke with a bid of £3m already being reported.

Celtic are on the look-out for a replacement for Carl Starfelt who is on the verge of leaving the club after two seasons in Paradise where he won five trophies including two Scottish Premiership titles. The defender though is now seeking a move and is likely to conclude a £5m switch to La Liga side Celta Vigo in the next day or two.

Starfelt’s partner, the former Celtic FC Women playmaker Jacynta recently left the club to sign for Sporting Club and the Spanish city of Vigo is on the border with Portugal and within driving distance of Lisbon.

The excellent social media account OliveFooty has posted a thread on Gustaf Lagerbielke, as follows:

Gustaf Lagerbielke (23/Sweden) From Elfsborg to Celtic. From di Guly to the Bhoys. A thread…

A Swedish defender that has played for a lot of teams despite just being 23; IFK Stocksund, FC Djursholm, AIK, Sollentuna FK, Västerås SK, IF Elfsborg and Degerfors IF. Now, he’s reported to go abroad to Glasgow to join the Hoops’ squad.

Playing as tall (1.91m) LCB, he’s been arguably the best defenders in the Allsvenskan this season.
Played a big part in helping Jimmy Thelin’s squad to the top of the table; contributed to 5 clean sheets and 2 goals in 13 starts.

Swedish international that shows incredibly much confidence with the ball & his defensive actions.
He excels in duels due to his build; he wins 1.9 ground duels per 90 (56%) and 3.9 aerial duels per 90 (65%).

Contributes by far the most long balls (9.2/90) in the league. With Celtic’s rapid attackers with great ball control, this could add a lot to Brandon Rogers’ squad. He doesn’t just spam long balls without thinking. He’s intelligent with a good vision.

He’s press-resistant. Errors & stress aren’t part of his vocabulary. He always had a plan. Whether it be tackling the opponent or making him drift wide, he thinks a step ahead. Because of his height, he’s a big threat on set pieces. 5 goals in the last 32 matches in the Swedish league. With Celtic getting many corners (7.8/90), Lagerbielke will undoubtedly hope to add a few more to his goalscoring-tally.

After the arrivals of Yang Hyun-Jun, Hyeok-Kyu Kwon and Maik Nawrocki, Celtic could get their hands on another young player with a really, really high ceiling. And for the reported amount of €3mil, this would be a steal.