THIS is a tale of Yin (big) and Yang. It tells of success in the transfer market but it also has a plot twist. A Celtic narrative of recruiting players who meet certain criteria has another strand now of experienced players being recruited at the top end of the market with commensurate wages.
Yang Hyun-Jo, the 22-year-old South Korean, signed on an undisclosed but presumably relatively moderate fee came on against Hibernian last Sunday ahead of Big Yin Adam Idah, the 24-year-old Irishman, signed last summer from Norwich City for a reported fee of £9m. Their very presence emphasises the switch in recruitment.
Similarly, the loan signing of Jeffrey Schlupp and the return to Celtic of Kieran Tierney and Jota in the last transfer window met the approval of most fans but is a departure from previous policy.
Brendan Rodgers must decide whether to buy potential or experience this summer
Winger Nicolas Kuhn joined Celtic for £2.5million but is now a prized asset
Yes, Celtic signed such as Kasper Schmeichel, Joe Hart and Aaron Mooy in the past but these were the outliers rather than the norm. The policy at Parkhead was characterised as signing young players with a relatively low profile who had played at under-age international level, were willing to sign for a wage of around £13,000 a week or below, and who had the potential to be sold on for a substantial fee.
The strangest aspect of this policy was how it has been routinely derided by some sections of the press and fans on social media. Yet it has been spectacularly successful. First, the balance sheets simply reveal this assertion as a solid truth. Celtic sell well and at increasingly high prices. Tierney, Jota and Matt O’Riley departed for fees in the £25m-£30m bracket.
But a more intriguing story lies in the price ranges below that where sporting excellence has been proved.
Mark Lawwell decided to leave the club a year ago. He had a leading role in identifying targets. He came to Celtic after 10 years in a senior scouting and recruitment position at City Football Group, owners of Manchester City, routinely described as an elite football operation.
Kieran Tierney will return to Celtic this summer when his Arsenal contract expires
His task at Celtic was to identify players for Ange Postecoglou, the manager he identified for Celtic and who subsequently brought him to the club, and then Brendan Rodgers. The manager holds the final decision on all transfers.
Yet Lawwell’s record was condemned by some, rated unsatisfactory by many. A cold examination of those he identified and helped recruit tells a different story.
The sudden rise of Yang is the most recent example. The young winger was labelled ‘a dud’ so recently that the wounds inflicted by this crude insult are still fresh. Yet now he is looked upon as an asset and one who is likely to improve. He has been called up for a South Korean team who are two games away from qualifying for a World Cup.
This journey to redemption was also walked most recently by Nicolas Kuhn, a £2.5m winger, also identified by Mark Lawwell, who is now interesting sides in the English Premier League and Bundesliga with his fee likely to be in the same range as that of O’Riley. Kuhn was ‘a dud’ to some at this time last year.
They have taken their chance to impress when selected for the team. Others have failed to find favour with Brendan Rodgers. This is a routine story in football: players recruited, manager does not fancy some of them, these unfortunates leave.
But what happens next is also instructive. The duds can explode. Under Ange Postecoglou, Lawwell scouted and recruited Alexandro Bernabei, Oh Hyeon-gyu and Alistair Johnson.
Canadian international Alistair Johnston has been touted as a future captain for Celtic
Bernabei was signed for £3m from Lanus in Buenos Aires and left for Internacional of Brazil for £4.5m in January. He was voted in the league’s team of the year at left-back. Oh, 23, has also made an impact at Genk. Celtic are believed to have made a profit on the signing when he moved to Belgium. The South Korean has helped his club to a healthy lead at the top of the Pro division and is also in the South Korean squad.
Johnston has simply been a gem. The fee for the Canadian is unknown but certainly less than £3m. At 26, he faces an intriguing dilemma. He is an obvious candidate for Celtic captaincy if he stays to complete a recently signed long-term deal. But he is also a target for EPL clubs, again with a price tag of O’Riley proportions.
Celtic thus made a financial profit on Bernabei and Oh and would make a substantial one if the Canadian full-back decided his career lay elsewhere.
The signings Lawwell identified for Rodgers merit investigation. Kuhn has been a spectacular success and Yang has shown potential of late. It was mildly interesting to observe the South Korean coming on when the Celtic manager sought to revitalise the Celtic front three in the later stages of the Scottish Cup quarter-final against Hibs last week.
Jota, still searching for full fitness, was the obvious candidate to come off but Idah normally comes on then with Daizen Maeda being moved wide. Instead, the young South Korean was entrusted with a substitute appearance with Maeda retaining the central role. Idah did come on later and scored. But Yang’s cameo confirmed that Rodgers has increasing confidence in him.
Paulo Bernardo, too, has been a success. His transition from loan signing to full-time recruit was completed last summer. Until his injury, he was an important part of the squad. A captain for the Portugese under-21 side, the midfielder already seems a copper-bottomed investment.
The others that Lawwell recruited for Rodgers have differing tales. They are Maik Nawrocki, Odin Thiago Holm, Hyeokkyu Kwon, Luis Palma, and Gustaf Lagerbielke. Transfer fees are notoriously hard to quantify accurately but Nawrocki was significantly the highest at £3.5m but has struggled to find a place in the team.
Polish defender Maik Nawrocki has struggled to make an impression at Celtic
Lagerbielke, with whom he formed a central defensive partnership at Ibrox in 2023 that claimed a clean sheet, has found going on loan to be a rewarding experience. He is now back in the Swedish squad after outstanding performances for FC Twente led him to make regular appearances in the Eredivisie team of the week.
Palma, who continues to impress with Honduras, is now at Olympiacos on loan. Kwon has played more than 20 games on loan at Hibs this season.
This list encompasses a range of experiences and achievement but it does give the lie to accusations of a series of ‘duds’. It will be viewed by some as merely a defence of the Mark Lawwell record. Readers can assess the evidence and make their own judgments.
The club, though, has undoubtedly moved into a different realm. The amount made available for transfers has risen appreciably. Idah, Aaron Trusty, Arnie Engels, for example, cost a combined £27m.
Intriguing questions are now being posed. As the 49ers move into the south side of Glasgow, their emphasis will be on smart recruitment with the use of analytics. What will be the strategy on the other side of the city?
Has the old model been abandoned or will it be used alongside considerable financial muscle? Will Rodgers prioritise experience over potential? Has the trawling of Asia and lower European leagues ended? Is it now about buying at the high end of the market or acquiring experienced free transfers?
Questions, questions. They will be answered in the summer.
