Celtic’s eleven summer signings reviewed and rated

The 2025 summer transfer window at Celtic Park was a blur of early arrivals, then speculation, and second-guessing. Eleven players came through the door, a full team’s worth, though it’s been rumoured that Brendan Rodgers only truly wanted three, if nobody left that is…

It was an unbalanced summer, rich in early promise but also fraught with questions of fit, patience, and planning. With the season a couple of months old, we can start to separate the early success stories from the slow burners and the outright mysteries.

Let’s have a recap to remind ourselves of all the new arrivals at Celtic in or just after the summer transfer window closed…

Sebastian Tounekti – Forward (Hammarby) – 8/10

This lad has looked exciting from the off. An ideal rotation option for Jota when he finally returns, Tounekti’s game feels cut from the same cloth. He commits defenders, can go either way, and switches comfortably between flanks. He’s raw, yes, but thrillingly direct, a winger in the old mould, or, as Rodgers himself has said, “a Celtic winger.”  

He still makes the wrong choice now and then, but that’s part of his charm. His fearlessness lights up the wings, and he’s beginning to find chemistry with the full-backs. Given the minutes he’s had and the flashes he’s produced, Tounekti has to be counted a qualified success already. If his trajectory continues, he’ll be impossible to ignore when the business end of the season comes around.

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Benjamin Nygren – Midfielder (Nordsjaelland) 7/10

For some, the jury remains out. Nygren arrived with an accomplished résumé and the air of a player who could slot almost anywhere in the attacking third. He looks, at times, like a striker or false nine masquerading as an attacking midfielder. At others, an inverted right winger starved of service. Injuries elsewhere, particularly the early injury to Alistair Johnston, who provides the crucial overlap on that flank have perhaps blunted Nygren’s start.

Rodgers has used him mainly as a No 8, and that experiment has been revealing. Nygren’s mobility and his struggles in defensive duels expose a player who thrives when the game is in front of him but can look lost when it flows past him. His best moments come when he’s given licence to attack, when there’s stability behind him to free him from the drudgery of defensive positioning. You sense the talent is real, but the system might be throttling it. In the right role, there’s a very good player here, in the wrong one, you fear frustration will continue to outweigh fulfilment.

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Michel-Ange Balikwisha – Forward (Royal Antwerp) – 5/10

Balikwisha’s story mirrors Nygren’s in some ways, ability never in doubt, context not yet right. Celtic tracked him for more than a year, believing he could add dynamism and a cutting edge from the left. His cameos suggest they were on to something ,that assist for Daizen’s winner against Motherwell was the product of sharp movement and vision.

But his fit within Rodgers’ preferred structure is still uncertain. In open games, when Celtic can counter and exploit space in behind, Balikwisha could well be dangerous. Against the domestic low block, he appears hesitant, almost caught between instincts, to cut in, to stay wide, or to probe.

His former coach believes he could even play centrally, and you can imagine him in a box-midfield shape beside Nygren behind a striker. Whether Celtic ever experiment that way is another matter. Early days, yes, but the player is there, the question is whether the system will ever let him out.

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Hayato Inamura – Defender (Albirex Niigata) – 5/10

From Japan arrived Hayato Inamura, a left-back of quiet intelligence and attacking verve. During pre-season, he looked offensively smart, always scanning forward, quick to attempt the killer pass, tactically alert. The profile seemed perfect for a modern Celtic full-back. And yet, the verdict from the manager was that he’s “not ready defensively.”

Instead of nurturing his positives or sending him on loan to polish the rough edges, the club chose to bring in another left-back on loan. The result? Inamura, once brimming with momentum, now stagnates. It’s not a good look for a player who so obviously has tools worth developing. There’s a footballer in there, clever, progressive, eager, but right now he’s parked in the shadows, and that helps no one.

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Shin Yamada – Forward (Kawasaki Frontale) – 6/10

Dropped from the Europa League squad in favour of Johnny Kenny, Yamada could be forgiven for wondering what more he must do. On the evidence we’ve seen, he’s a striker who can hold the ball, link with the No 8s, feed the wingers, and attack crosses, precisely what Celtic often lack against deep defences.

His exclusion likely stems from tactical adaptation rather than talent. Rodgers’ system demands intense pressing and positional discipline out of possession, and Yamada may still be adjusting to that. But there’s a proper striker here, one who could operate in Europe’s open spaces and in the Scottish Premiership’s packed boxes alike. If he stays focused and patient, his chance will come, and when it does, he may well keep the shirt.

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Kieran Tierney – Defender (Arsenal) – 7/10

The homecoming story of the summer has been a slow burn, but no surprise there. Tierney’s body has been through too many stops and starts to expect instant fireworks. Aside from one full 90-minute outing, he’s been eased back carefully, which is only sensible.

Physically and mentally, the recovery from repeated injuries is a marathon. Still, when he plays, the quality shows, the overlapping drive, the defensive timing, the leadership. Celtic must remain patient. Tierney will get there. He always does. The real reward will come later in the season when match sharpness and confidence finally align. Or perhaps if Celtic shift to a back 3.

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Callum Osmand – Forward (Fulham) – 4/10

Osmand was one of the more curious recruits, a young forward who looked bright in pre-season but has yet to taste senior men’s football. A loan move, reportedly lined up by Shaun Maloney to a Championship side, was turned down by the player himself. That’s a gamble.

Yet you have to admire the self-belief. With Celtic’s strike force still searching for consistency, Osmand may see opportunity rather than obstacle. He’s betting on himself to seize a moment rather than learn elsewhere. It might prove naive, but it also hints at a mentality that Celtic fans appreciate, confident, bordering on cocky, but never short of conviction, will do for me. Cut of jib, very much liked. No idea yet if he’s any good yet.

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Kelechi Iheanacho – Forward (Sevilla) – 8/10

If anyone has hit the ground running, it’s Kelechi Iheanacho. Important goals already under his belt, a visible connection with supporters, and the sort of personality that lifts a dressing room. He’s not flawless, a touch loose when carrying the ball, sometimes flat-footed when crosses flash through the box, but his finishing touch remains assured.

More importantly, he links play well, bringing the No 8s and wingers into the attack. Rodgers trusts him, and Iheanacho seems to thrive under that trust, as he once did in England. He’s the No 9 now, and the shirt is his to lose. There’s still plenty to work on, but there’s plenty to work with too. Celtic may finally have a reliable focal point again.

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Ross Doohan – Goalkeeper (Aberdeen) – 4/10 

Back at Celtic for a second spell, now the No 3 goalkeeper, Ross Doohan represents stability rather than spectacle. In an ideal world, this slot would go to a younger keeper gaining experience through Scotland’s new cooperation system, moving fluidly between loan and parent club for minutes. But Celtic prefer a seasoned backup.

Doohan’s international recognition and steady displays at Aberdeen suggest reliability if called upon, yet the reality is he may not see meaningful action all season. It’s pragmatic squad management, perhaps, but not particularly inspiring for a player who may still harbour ambitions of regular football.

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Marcelo Saracchi – Defender (Boca Juniors, loan) – 6/10 

On loan from Boca, Saracchi arrived as the energetic foil Celtic’s left side sorely lacked. Think Alex Bernabei with slightly more restraint, Greg Taylor with a bit more chaos. He’s aggressive, exuberant, and injects much-needed tempo into games.

His challenge for Motherwell’s penalty last Sunday was clumsy, but such rashness is almost built into his DNA. Overall, though, he’s been a positive addition, apparently not just on the field but in the dressing room too, where energy has perhaps also been in short supply. There’s no option to buy, but as a short-term boost he’s proving his worth. His burgeoning partnership with Sebastian Tounekti is one to watch.

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Jahmai Simpson-Pusey – Defender (Manchester City, loan) – N/A

And then there’s the enigma, Jahmai Simpson-Pusey. Does he even exist? The Manchester City loanee hasn’t yet kicked a ball for Celtic despite Pep Guardiola himself having praised the youngster publicly last season after first-team cameos.

It’s baffling. Rumours abound, as they always do, about politics behind the scenes, about who actually sanctioned the move and a dislike of B-Team football. Don’t blame him if that one is true.

What is certain is that this is an expensive loan, with no option to buy because the fee would be north of £20 million. If Celtic aren’t going to use him, they’d be better off breaking the deal early and sending him back to City. It helps neither club nor player to let him gather dust.

Still, there’s hope we might finally see him after the international break. Until then, he remains the great question mark of this recruitment drive.

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So, eleven signings later, Celtic’s summer feels like a microcosm of modern football recruitment, part vision, part chaos, part compromise. A handful have settled and look like proper additions — Tounekti, Tierney, Iheanacho, and Saracchi all feel woven into the fabric already.

Others, like Nygren, Balikwisha, Yamada, and Osmand, are hovering in that liminal space between potential and product. And then there are those who leave you scratching your head, Inamura, Doohan, and Simpson-Pusey, talented, intriguing, but currently peripheral.

The broader question is structural. If Rodgers truly only wanted three players, assuming no-one left that is, what does that say about alignment between the manager and those above him? Because on the evidence so far, Celtic have assembled a squad of individuals rather than one built to a coherent blueprint. There’s talent here, undoubtedly, but also the risk of stunted growth, if development stalls and opportunities are unevenly distributed.

Still, the season is long, and Celtic seasons have a habit of finding unlikely heroes. One or two of these names may yet define the campaign in ways nobody predicted. For now, though, this summer’s business stands as both an opportunity and a warning, a reminder that quantity and quality are not the same thing, and that even at a club the size of Celtic, patience remains the rarest currency of all.

Niall J

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