It’s all turning into a mugs game for Celtic…
It will be sad to see Daniel Cummings leave, but it’s not about development, and more about money. He’s certainly not the first, and he definitely won’t be the last…
Cummings close to pre-contract deal with West Ham
We look to have lost yet another promising prospect in Daniel Cummings who looks set to sign a pre-contract with EPL side West Ham United. Lower profile agents have sourced a rich revenue source picking off the cream from Celtic’s Academy and placing them in English sides whether it’s current Premier League leaders Liverpool or even more humble destinations like Millwall or Watford. It looks like we are going to add West Ham to that list.
Daniel Cummings who has been prolific in the B side this season appeared as a substitute in the 4-2 defeat against Aston Villa on Wednesday night, was supposedly offered a new deal by the club, but now looks set to be yet another youth product to be tempted by the riches down south.
Celtic’s record of fielding youth players has been abysmal in recent years, we can’t deny that, but is Daniel Cummings going to get more first team opportunities in East London? No is the honest answer. In fact his chances of first team football would be significantly better at Celtic.
It doesn’t help that anytime a young player gets a game and isn’t Virgil Van Dyke right away that they get subjected to an insane amount of vitriol about how bad a player they are. When fans are demanding multi million pound signings and the young players who do make it through and go on to have careers with the club, who go on to become one of the most decorated players to play for the club don’t even get their own song, I mean if James Forrest was called Saintigo Forresto he would get treated a lot different than he does, would certainly the respect he’s due.
Fans demand a win every game, fans demand top players, they all say they want young players coming through right up until they’re trying to break through, then they’re Mikey Johnston “He’s mince, get rid of him” The amount of pressure that fans put those young lads through after one game.
What chance have most of them got? and how many of them in the youth ranks are looking at what happens to Mikey and the others?
100%
JP, I get your point but in the case of Mickey Johnstone, he had his chances. He went on loan to WBA and was excellent for them and came back to a seemingly even heavier jersey to wear. He was 24 so maybe didn’t quite have the temperament to handle playing for Celtic. We also had enough time to develop him into a tidy sum of money as opposed to the peanuts we’ve recently received for the obvious talent thats slipped away far to early.
Great article. Do these regular £300,000 fees cover the cost of the Academy? I’d play the youth players as often as we can for rest of this season, if not now when?
I really think it is waste having a youth set up. Nothing coming through that is anywhere near the first team. Nursery for Englieh cubs
As they say, in life money talks.
Celtic really do need to take a serious look at the development and progression of youth to the first team squad. This can be highlighted and referenced specifically from the way the Dutch teams (Ajax, PSV and feyenoord) bring young talent through the ranks, they see the potential then integrate them straight into the first team squad and start playing them, even if it is against the weaker teams in the league or be it 20/30 mins when the game is done.
Admittedly this may involve taking a few hits along the way but we play in a league where right now and for the foreseeable future we are more than capable of still having enough to be winning.
This then shows the youth that yes you may be the 3rd or 4th choice in your position but a pathway does exist to their dreams..
Cummings stats show he’s definitely deserving of that chance.
As they say though for some, money talks.
Wouldn’t say it’s totally about money, even if a factor.
Thinking opportunity has the bigger influence with a career path in place for themselves.
Lowland league to top of the SPFL, with not to much available in-between, is the current state of affairs.
The knock on effect, is making it harder with every passing season, to even fulfil our 8 homegrown quota requirements for a CL squad.
Going to become either harder with calmac and forrest at the back end of there careers, yet not to much around as potential replacements in sight still.
Wouldn’t be surprised that we could be looking at a situation further down the line, where we might be having to buy back some of these youngsters to fill homegrown requirements.
And at a much higher price than what they left for in the first place.
Would prefer for the club to pull out of the Lowland league, and maybe see if we could enter a team within the u23 league in England, to help with development along with players returning from injuries.
Scottish football remains in holding ourselves back in terms of what is potentially best for our club imo
Celtic are not playing any game and the fact that other clubs have written to the SFA to safe guard from losing young player they have developed on the cheap. The SFA as yet have done or said nothing,
EPL teams can throw these players £10k – £20K a week and it will not make a dent in their budgets – We cannot. So anyone who blames the club for this is an idiot
The hearts not in it and Celtic supporters know it he is better off leaving be nice to give us a season or two then sell him but the boys heasmds been turned he will end up with a nice car but no trophies I hate to think that about young players but brixit has done Scotland no good on all levels 10 percent of young hopefulls make it but money turns players
Its all about greed and what they can get down south. £10-15 grand a week and add ons. In a short career might sound good and when your 30 you have a few quid in the bank.
But what have you won? Nothing, no league winners medals, no cup winners medals just cash.
And no pride.
Bearing in mind that is if you actually make it.
Celtic cant match the money in England and rightly so not be held to ransom.
JP, I get your point but in the case of Mickey Johnstone, he had his chances. He went on loan to WBA and was excellent for them and came back to a seemingly even heavier jersey to wear. He was 24 so maybe didn’t quite have the temperament to handle playing for Celtic. We also had enough time to develop him into a tidy sum of money as opposed to the peanuts we’ve recently received for the obvious talent thats slipped away far to early.
I watch my kid playing on Sunday, his team almost folded last week because the boys are fed up with just running and passing drills, no other variation since the previous qualified coach left and a dad took over. That and the chairman saying they’re getting new facilities then just abandoning them to a terrible pitch and no support. I’m not blaming the dad – I’m blaming the SFA because at grassroots, there is no infrastructure, unlike say Germany. The comment above about asking the English FA to field an U23 team makes some sense, as the leap from lowland to SPL is huge.
The players we’ve lost, I don’t know if it’s money or they talk amongst themselves and feel it’s hopeless getting a chance to break through and succeed here. Whatever it is, if it’s money, then we simply cannot compete with that. If it’s progress, then yes, if we had our youngsters playing at a higher level, we could integrate them more often. It’s also the nature of football now that even a manager isn’t given long to show success. Can you imagine a Man U giving someone the time they gave Fergie to succeed? And it was youngsters that carried his team forward to greater success.
For us, we’re expected to win every game but…..if we get to April and have say a 15+ point lead, then there’s no reason we can’t play Sinisalo, Murray, Frame, Turley, Montgomery because…….we don’t even know the B team well, they rarely, if ever get the chance to play in the SPL. And either that helps push some towards the door or it’s money but either way, statistically, not all kids will go purely for money. Some must feel that there just won’t be chances given. So it goes back to the SFA. They should be working with all clubs to help create a blueprint for pathways to the SPL. And if they won’t consider the future of Scottish football, then yes, go ask the FA down south to join a youth league; at least they’d be playing at a higher level then
If they do not want to play for Celtic let them go…vata went Watford… Kelly went to Millwall… Cummings going to west ham… who cares… they are leaving Celtic for money… money grabbing twats the 3 of them… when was the last Celtic young player to come through the ranks and make a name for himself… you will struggle to find many… Brendan Rodgers is right what he is doing… Kelly cannot even get a game for Millwall… you guys at the Celtic star talk alot of nonsense…
A generation or so ago kids grew up and into football with glory on their mind, emulating great players, feats and wins. Wages? Afterthought.
Today, thanks to the commercialism of the sport, the web, social media, etc, they also grow up knowing the BLING involved and that unfortunately takes paramount over romantic ideals.
Professional Footballer’s contracts, mansions, burds and lambos are the new silverware, title and medal aspirations. Greed is God.