Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side secured another victory against Ross County last night to set up a League Cup quarter-final at Fir Park against Motherwell. With crucial games coming up the Celtic manager rotated his squad, making 9 changes to the starting line-up from the team that won 9-0 at the weekend. That didn’t stop Celtic defeating Ross County with an impressive 4-1 triumph, making it another fantastic away win for Ange’s side. Highlights are below.
After the match, the Celtic manager, speaking to the media, gave some insight on his plans for the last day of this transfer window, which closes at midnight tonight. Asked about what fans can expect regarding transfers, Ange said: “They can expect some transfers and ins and outs. We will see what happens over the next 24 hours.”
Ange was specifically asked about the Rubin Kazan midfielder Olivier Abildgaard, and whether that name is ‘familiar to him. Ange replied: “He is a name yes. He is definitely a name. There have been a lot of names and there are 24 hours to go we are working on some outgoings and we will see how things go over the next 24 hours,” Postecoglou said, as reported by Scottish Sun.
And of course since that media interview last night, the deal to bring the Danish international defensive midfielder to Celtic looks like having been agreed, as has been reported on The Celtic Star this morning.
The manager was also asked about Mikey Johnston’s situation and whether the Celtic winger will be going out on loan. As Ange has significantly strengthened the Celtic squad, Mikey Johnston has little chance of getting much game time at Celtic this season.
“Yes, we are still working on that and there are a couple of good possibilities for him,” Ange said and don’t be surprised if Mikey ended up joining Liam Scales on loan up at Aberdeen. Alternatively a move to Portugal might be better suited to the winger’s talents.
Mikey Johnston is expected to join Portuguese club Vitoria Guimaraes on a season-long loan today.
— Kieran Devlin (@NoNotThatDevlin) September 1, 2022
The Celtic manager was also asked if he will be glad to see the transfer window closing. He replied: “No, I’m alright. It doesn’t bother me but it is a lot less hectic than last year – I think there was 10 minutes to go before we signed Cameron Carter-Vickers and that was a more stressful time.
“This window has been good for us and we kind of knew what we wanted to do. We moved at the right time and we got our guys in nice and early. We’ve done our business early and the players have embedded themselves in the team and irrespective of our objectives in this window we have come out looking pretty healthy.”
Overall, Ange Postecoglou kept his cards close to his chest but hinted at a few possible developments with Olivier Abildgaard coming in and maybe three or four heading out on loan, with Liam Shaw, Scott Robertson and maybe James McCarthy – with Sunderland being mentioned as a possible destination today.
Celtic are closing in on the signing of Rubin Kazan midfielder Oliver Abildgaard.
Winger Mikey Johnston is in talks Vitoria Guimaraes over a loan deal.
And the Hoops are also looking at loan options for midfielder Liam Shaw before the window closes.#DeadlineDay
— Anthony Joseph (@AnthonyRJoseph) September 1, 2022
