If Amartey rumours are true it could signal a shift in our transfer strategy…
Quite a few rumours are floating around that Besiktas midfielder Daniel Amartey is interesting Celtic, with more than a few saying it’s a deal that’s close to completion. Whether it’s just the usual summer peculation remains to be seen, but if it’s true, it’s something that should make us feel positive about our club in terms of moving forward.
Amartey is not only a decent player, at 29 he’s experienced and first team ready. The £3.5 million that is being quoted is also something the club wouldn’t part with in recent years for a soon to be 30 year old. So this deal could signal a move in our terms of our ‘projects based’ transfer strategy that for the past few years has been to sign relatively unknown younger players with potential in a bid to develop and sell on for a big profit.
There’s nothing wrong with that of course, and it’s something we should be aiming to do all the time, but there has to be a better balance and that is something that Brendan Rodgers has made clear that he wants to happen.
It was a difficult first year back for the Celtic manager as he had to essentially work with the squad and the summer signings that were made, to see what he could get out of them in terms of performances on the park. And he had to deliver silverware and get the better of theRangers in order to get the support fully onside once again after the events of February 2019.
Brendan Rodgers won the Scottish Premiership and the Scottish Cup with what he had – adding only Nicolas Kuhn and his own loan signing, Adam Idah in the January window. Now he has the opportunity to do things his way and will have the backing of both the Celtic Board and the Celtic support.
Bringing in a guy as experienced as Amartey if it does indeed happen would be a positive move. The Ghanaian international is equally as comfortable in midfield or at centre back. He’s strong, he has pace, and he’s good on the ball. Best of all Brendan also knows him from his time at Leicester City, so if any such move comes to fruition, you know it’s one that’s been sanctioned by Brendan himself and that in itself is worth celebrating.
Just an Ordinary Bhoy
From The Celtic Star Archive…
“Now he has the opportunity to do things his way and will have the backing of both the Celtic Board”
That’s a bit of a statement of trust.
The Celtic Board tend to look after the Celtic Board , the bottom line and ignore everything else.
This is the Board that watched the team grind out results almost every week through until December. They watched injuries occur to important players during that time yet did nothing to alleviate the glaring deficiencies in the squad in January yet sat on a bank balance of £60M.
Let’s be honest here, we got really lucky with Idah, but I suppose a one in nine hit rate is about right in our recruitment strategy. Of all the players we signed last year he made by far the most contribution.
Lagerbielke – to me looked OK but not given time
Nawrocki – jury is out
Yang – ???
Palma – show pony only interested in how he looks. Not a team player.
Odin Holm – looked OK then disappeared
Kuhn – ???
Idah – did well
I would go as far to say if it had not been for the emergence of Scales and the acquisition of Idah we would not have won the double.
Things, and the hit rate of signings, need to change a Celtic.
I’ll wait and reserve judgement on our Board until after the transfer window.
Why no thoughts on Yang and Kühn? but negative for Palma?
Fair point. I had originally thought both hadn’t featured much but that, on reflection, they have probably played just as much.
Yang is quick and tricky but I think the red card at Tynecastle knocked his confidence and he struggled after that.
Kuhn I believe had weight and dental issues when he arrived in January.
It is a personal thing but neither to me seem to be players who are going to radically alter a match when they come on.
When we had Jota, Abada, and Maeda, one of them was always on the bench and you knew they could alter a match when they came on.
Palma, to me, was unplayable against Aberdeen early in the season. He scored a great goal against Ross County in Dingwall and also set up Forrest in the same match but after that I’m struggling to remember meaningful contributions.
Watching him frustrates me: step over, step over, check back. It’s like watching a Mikey Johnstone clone and how any centre forward is supposed to time a run, when they never know when or if the ball is going to arrive, is beyond me.
Although a bug bear of mine is playing wingers on the opposite wing: Palma being right footed is played on the left wing. It means the winger is rarely going to go to the byline and turn the defence.
It’s obviously only my opinion but overall our recruitment needs to get better. I think we can all agree on that.