Jack Hendry has joined Club Brugge on a four year deal. Celtic sold him to Oostende this summer and the Belgians side have shrewdly decided to sell him for a deal worth up to £8.6m, which will deliver Celtic a sell-on fee that is yet to be disclosed. Celtic would have likely made a lot more had they sold the player directly but they were bound by the contract that had been agreed the season before.
Celtic will earn a sell-on fee that is usually a percentage of the profit, meaning that they could take a chunk of Oostende’s profit for Hendry. The Belgian side are bulking up ahead of the Champions League group stages, where they have been drawn against Man City, RB Leipzig and PSG meaning that the player will be in the firing line in Europe.
Hendry represents a disappointment in the club’s transfer business. He arrived for a high fee from Dundee, which would have added extra pressure to the youngster. It might have been due to his turn of pace, height or insistence to pass the ball that Celtic signed him but in truth, he never really settled. Rodgers appeared content asking him to play at right-back as well as at the heart of defence but he struggled to break into the side with Ajer, Boyata and Simunovic ahead of him in the pecking order. The new season may have increased opportunities for Hendry but he struggled to justify the price tag – often copping flak when thrown in at the deep end by Rodgers. AEK Athens and Salzburg away act as examples of Hendry being put in the deep end and judged harshly after a few games.
Neil Lennon clearly didn’t fancy Hendry and offered him limited game time but injuries hampered his chances to really make a mark. It is ironic that the one season Hendry enjoyed a prolonged run in the team, Celtic’s defence was utterly decimated. Ange Postecoglou has signed Carl Starfelt and the manager wants another central defender brought in on deadline day.