Opinion - Lawrence Shankland not the striker Celtic need

Shankland doesn’t offer value for money and is not the type of striker that Celtic requires…

Lawrence Shankland of Hearts reacts after he scores the opening goal during the Cinch Scottish Premiership match between Celtic FC and Heart of Midlothian at Celtic Park Stadium on December 16, 2023 (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The transfer window has been fully opened for a week now and as you can imagine, the rumours are well and truly flowing. And as expected Celtic has been linked with a number of players, and although we are in need of a few fresh faces one of them is NOT going to be Lawrence Shankland. Well hopefully not.

Lawrence Shankland of Hearts vies with Liam Scales of Celtic during the Cinch Scottish Premiership match between Celtic FC and Heart of Midlothian at Celtic Park Stadium on December 16, 2023. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Shankland is a decent striker, that’s not in doubt, but he doesn’t have what it takes to be a Celtic forward. Is he better than Kyogo? No he isn’t, despite what some are arguing. If you are of that thinking, you are delusional.

Shankland is a clinical finisher, that’s not in doubt, his overall goal stats are proof of that. But he lacks in pace and movement. Thats why he would struggle to make the grade at Celtic. The way Brendan Rodgers sets his strikers up to press and move would mean Shankland would, I believe, struggle to adapt to life at Celtic. That’s a fact.

Scotland’s striker Lawrence Shankland celebrates after scoring the team’s second goal during the UEFA Euro 2024 football tournament Group A qualifying match between Georgia and Scotland in Tbilisi on November 16, 2023. (Photo by GIORGI ARJEVANIDZE/AFP via Getty Images)

There’s also the matter of the reported £5 million price tag for his services. Can you see the club splashing out that much on a 28 year old player just to sit on the bench? The short answer is no. Celtic have been well aware of Shankland for a number of years, even before he was scoring goals for Aberdeen Reserves. He was regarded by the club as ‘the best goalscorer of his generation’ of up and coming Scottish players, but at no stage where Celtic convinced that he could make the grade at Celtic – nothing has changed has it?

He’s also had shades of Kenny Miller about his, wearing the Hoops but everyone knowing that he’d rather be scoring against Celtic rather than for us.

Kenny Miller of Celtic celebrates after scoring against Rangers during the Scottish Premier League match between Celtic and Rangers at Celtic Park on September 23, 2006. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

We do need a new striker, but Shankland for footballing reasons alone, is not the one. We can do much better. There are players of higher quality out there to fill that position and at the Hearts asking price, Shankland does not represent good value for money.

If they had any cash then he’d be much happier across the city anyway.

Just an Ordinary Bhoy