‘Give Celtic a Director of Football, Mr Lawwell and Neil Lennon will deliver,’ Niall J

I think you could call this the ‘what might have been’ transfer window.

It’s a welcome turnaround in playing staff and it looks a decent balance on paper between first team ready players and young ‘project’ type players, we believe can push the current squad. But in terms of how it was structured, managed and supported it was lacking in planning. We got there, though even at the end it was a rush job. That it was so badly planned has left us wondering what might have been.

In total we lost 13 first team squad players from the end of last season. Nine of those were ours.

Kieran Tierney, defender (£25million Arsenal), Dedryck Boyata, defender (Hertha Berlin); Mikeal Lustig, defender (Gent); Scott Allan, midfielder (Hibernian); Christian Gamboa, defender (Bochum); Marvin Compper, defender (Duisburg); Dorus de Vries, goalkeeper (retired); Emilio Izaguirre, defender; Youssouf Mulumbu, midfielder.

And four were loans returned to parent clubs. (Timothy Weah, forward (Paris St-Germain); Filip Benkovic, defender (Leicester City); Jeremy Toljan, defender (Borussia Dortmund); Oliver Burke, forward (West Bromwich Albion).

We have also loaned out a further 10 players all at varying stages of their development,

Kundai Benyu, midfielder (Helsingborg); Anthony Ralston, defender (St Johnstone); Ewan Henderson, midfielder (Ross County); Ross Doohan, goalkeeper (Ayr United); Stephen Welsh, defender (Greenock Morton); Andrew Gutman, defender (Charlotte Independence); Manny Perez, defender (North Carolina); Jack Aitchison, forward (Forrest Green Rovers); Robbie Deas, defender (Alloa Athletic); Daniel Church, defender (East Fife).

And we’ve moved on five permanently who we’ve deemed now aren’t going to make the grade. Dylan Forrest, midfielder (Hamilton Academical); Wallace Duffy, defender (Dundee); PJ Crossan, forward (Dumbarton); Regan Hendry, midfielder (Raith Rovers); Reece Willison, goalkeeper (Airdrieonians);

28 player then have departed in some shape or form and for a variety of reasons.

By my reckoning we’ve brought in seven first team players. Four permanent signings in Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo, defender (Rapid Vienna, undisclosed); Christopher Jullien, defender (Toulouse, undisclosed); Hatem Abd Elhamed, defender (Hapoel Be’er Sheva, £1.3m); Greg Taylor, defender (Kilmarnock, undisclosed) and three who are on loan, Fraser Forster, goalkeeper (Southampton); Moritz Bauer, defender (Stoke City); Mohamed Elyounoussi, midfielder (Southampton).

We’ve brought in a further seven ‘project’ type players who are all likely to train with the first team squad or thereabouts and all will be tried out at various times to see where they stand regarding a route to the team. Luca Connell, midfielder (Bolton Wanderers, £350k); Tobi Oluwayemi, goalkeeper (Tottenham Hotspur, undisclosed); Leo Hjelde, defender (Rosenborg, undisclosed); Jeremie Frimpong, defender (Manchester City, undisclosed); Lee O’Connor, defender (Manchester United, undisclosed); Jonathan Afolabi, forward (Southampton); Liam Burt, midfielder (the Rangers).

So 14 players in on permanent or loan deals for the season ahead. Leaving us with 14 less players on the books than last season. It’s a definite streamlining of the squad both financially in terms of wages and in the numbers employed.

We’ve spent roughly 50%, possibly more of the Tierney transfer fund on permanent signings. Neil Lennon has the trimmed squad he wanted and no complaints there. Last season’s squad was bloated and unbalanced. It may well be that has now been addressed, time will reveal all regarding that.

Peter Lawwell has the massively reduced wage bill he craved and there is also room for more. We clearly have players who remain, be it in Neil’s mind or Peter’s that are surplus to requirements.

Scott Sinclair, Jack Hendry, Eboue Kouassi and Calvin Miler. There is also argument that either Scott Bain or possibly Craig Gordon would be classed as a keeper too many on the books (I think we have 6 in total). With the arrival of Fraser Forster we are unlikely to wish to pay the wages of three first team goalkeepers.

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WHY THE CLUJ DISASTER HAPPENED

Had we been starting our European qualifiers now I’d say we’d be just fine with the squad we have, the balance of it, the fact it is now streamlined and also has scope for a bit more to be cut away. Where we stand on the quality compared to the last few seasons we’ll not know until we’ve given this squad a few months to show their various abilities.

But we’ve had the European qualifiers and we’re in the Consolation Cup again. The fact the transfer window closed last night and we got players in doesn’t cover for how ineffective our recruitment was in comparison to the timing of important matches we faced so early on. There are arguments aplenty as to why we went out.

Neil Lennon did indeed make a series of errors during the Cluj game but for me his biggest was the moving of Callum McGregor to left back. Not because he’s a poor left back but because he was our best midfielder.

But this is how I saw it putting myself in Lenny’s boots on that one decision. He felt Cluj intended to target Bolingoli. He was also acutely aware Boli was getting very public criticism for some early shaky performances. Given the circumstances a coach would normally have reached out to his alternative left back and removed Bolingoli from the firing line.

Lennon couldn’t do that, he didn’t have another left back to call on. He gambled and lost and the decision was poor with the benefit of hindsight. He could and should have simply stuck with Bolingoli.

That he didn’t have an alternative choice in place by not the first round, nor the second round but the third round of qualifiers and all the wildcard transfer dates in between was down to the board. Greg Taylor signed last night. He was available all summer. Yes there were other tactical errors on the night but we had a manager who wanted to make a change at left back. He only had one to choose from. The recruitment and transfer policy were just as culpable as Neil Lennon was.

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HAMMOND, CONGERTON AND THE NEED FOR A DIRECTOR OF FOOTBALL

Nicky Hammond must have had some input into these transfers I’d assume but the first team players at least look not to have been influenced by him. If not then hopefully he is working on a structure regarding scouting from youth level right through to the first team. Something we appeared to have mothballed for a substantial period of time.

Off the field we’ve been a shambles in terms of scouting, structure and forward planning. Questions need asked as to why it took so long to get rid of Congerton. Why we waited for a payoff for him, then got in a summer job post with no job title. Why we had so few scouts, UK based or internationally and why most of our permanent transfers were Lenny’s scouts or already known under the previous regime.

That was our biggest error, we gambled the Champions League and lost. We’ve all seen this movie before and we can all hope we don’t see it again, but unless the pressure remains on Peter Lawwell I worry we will.

Celtic need a Director of Football. Peter Lawwell has already promised that post, he needs to deliver it on a permanent basis with the CEO’s influence curtailed.

If it’s Nicky Hammond so be it, if it’s someone else I hope we are interviewing now. It needs to have a title, a responsibility, be a buffer between Manager and Chief Executive and have genuine autonomy.

It needs to be budgeted and within a defined working structure from youth signings to first team players. It needs to have a list of coaches, analysts and dare I say managers all on file, all fully examined and with strengths and weaknesses recorded and ready to go when change is required.

Perhaps we need to think of January as our main transfer window and the few weeks up to the qualifiers as a time to tweak, not the other way about. If we do qualify perhaps we can look at 1 or 2 loan players to aid a Champions league push once the English window closes. Hopefully that will all be considered and debated if and when we address the off field structure.

NEIL LENNON DESERVES GREAT CREDIT

Neil Lennon deserves great credit so far. There have been a lot of changes and there have been gaping holes in his squad that were only really filled by close of play last night. We have great positives to take forward. The team is playing some wonderful football. We changed the style of play and we are still getting results. Domestically we have performed as well as could be expected and in Europe despite the Champions league mistakes at home to Cluj we do at least have European football to look forward to albeit not at the top table.

It really does make you wonder what if?

What if we give Neil Lennon that settled structure to support him? A cohesive working framework off the field that he can rely on? Where could Neil Lennon take this team? Are we being somewhat blinkered in terms of domestic football, could we reach beyond that?

With the right backing and organisation at a playing level to match the off field excellence we show in sponsorship and merchandising etc, how far could Neil Lennon take this team?

He’s taken us to the last 16 of the Champions League before. He had that backing then in John Park. Park is still without employment. Let’s ask that question of him or someone of that ilk.

Give Celtic a Director of Football, Mr Lawwell and Neil Lennon will deliver.

Niall J

ALSO ON THE CELTIC STAR TODAY…

‘Spooked us from the beginning,’ Rangers fans grudging admiration for how Celtic Kicked-off Beautiful Sunday…see HERE.

‘Appenin’ Bitton – Nir’s long overdue appreciation and why he deserves a new deal…see HERE.

Celtic’s Eventual Summer Transfer Window Reviewed – Board, Management, Players and Fans…see HERE.