Ryan Mmaee was another of a long line of names we expected to be linked with Celtic over the course of the summer transfer window, with the Ferencvaros and Moroccan international forward recently touted with a move to Celtic.
Reported moves for any players at the moment should of course be tempered with the fact both the recent arrival of Mark Lawwell – and January’s acquisition of former Benfica analyst Antoine Ortega having been added to the behind-the-scenes staff, to help with both opposition analysis and assist with player recruitment – meaning a more data driven approach to scouting players is now being undertaken, and those recommendations taken more seriously than they possibly were before the arrival of Ange Postecoglou.
With that in mind it is worth noting earlier links to Ryan Mmaee previously only indicated ‘extensive analysis’ had been carried out on the player. That was until now.
Kieran Devlin, The Athletic’s Celtic correspondent appeared on Celtic Fan media’s Cynic.co’s ‘Agenda’ Podcast and indicated his sources have claimed that Celtic are very much interested in Mmaee.
“I heard on Friday from a couple of people that they’re really keen on Ferencvaros striker Ryan Mmaee. There’s loads of legs in that. Looking into him he seems a really good fit, I’d be quite excited about bringing him in.
“People say you’ve got GG and Kyogo there, but there were times where both of those guys were injured and we had to play Ajeti through the middle or play a false nine, I do think you are one or two injuries away from having a striker crisis.”
In total Ryan Mmaee’s club career accounts for 51 goals and 21 assists from a total of 143 appearances across all competitions, and at only 24 there is a solid argument to be made that further improvement is likely.
Mmamee stand at just over 6ft, is predominately right footed, and has been played behind a main striker and on the wings – the possibility of being able to play across the frontline would certainly make Mmaee a tempting prospect.
Mmaee a certainly a fine ball carrier and has a strong dribbling ability. Alongside his eye for goal, he has a good turn of pace and can move direction when carrying the ball comfortably whilst maintaining a good understanding of where teammates and opponents are alike.
At Ferencvaros Mmaee has added European experience, performing in both the Europa League and in Champions League qualifiers for the Hungarian Champions, meanwhile at international level experience has been gained in both World Cup qualifiers and in the African Cup of Nations.
Mmaee also offers something different to Celtic’s striking option at present with that ball carrying ability something notably different from both Kyogo and Giakoumakis, and as such his acquisition would certainly add another layer to Celtic’s attacking options.
It would appear if Kieran Devlin’s sources are right that Celtic have not only extensively analysed Ryan Mmaee, they are also very keen on bringing the player to the club this summer.
Niall J
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