Celtic face fan backlash over stalled summer transfer business
Scottish champions Celtic have made just one signing ahead of their title defence, sparking fan outrage over a structural recruitment failure that threatens to undermine the club's competitive standing against better-funded domestic rivals.
Celtic have made just one signing since clinching the league title on the final day last season, adding only Camilo Duran to a squad that begins its title defence against Dundee next week. The lack of activity contrasts sharply with the heavy spending of their domestic competitors and has triggered severe supporter unrest.
Chief executive Michael Nicholson admitted it has been proving "difficult" to add to manager Martin O'Neill's squad as Celtic compete for talent with wealthy clubs in England's top two divisions. However, this financial reality has not stopped rivals from aggressively reshaping their rosters ahead of the new campaign.
Rangers have brought in seven new players, paying transfer fees for four, including last season's top scorer Lawrence Shankland and goalkeeper Ivor Pandur. Hearts, meanwhile, have signed 11 players using the Jamestown Analytics recruitment algorithm, paying fees for five of them despite selling the same number of first-teamers.
Instead of building, Celtic are liquidating assets and losing players for nothing. The club failed to automatically extend Kelechi Iheanacho's contract, allowing the striker to join Turkish second-tier side Bursaspor on a free transfer.
Celtic are also poised to sell Daizen Maeda to Ipswich Town for a reported £10m, a move former striker Chris Sutton described as "a bad deal". O'Neill is expecting the sales of midfielders Reo Hatate and Arne Engels, while the club has yet to replace the retired Kasper Schmeichel.
Former Celtic striker Cillian Sheridan attributed the stagnant window to structural failures at the executive level. "It kind of all goes back to the fact there's no-one in the position of head of recruitment," he said, noting the club seems to be recycling old transfer targets rather than identifying new ones.
Sheridan contrasted Celtic's approach with Motherwell, who finished fourth under a clear strategic model. "Motherwell have a plan in place where guys are signing, they're able to sign players if there's a manager there or not," he said. "That's the modern model. Celtic are putting themselves under a lot of pressure before a ball is kicked."
The situation risks replicating the turmoil of last year, when a poor transfer window sparked fan protests and the departures of managers Brendan Rodgers and Wilfried Nancy. "It's almost a carbon copy of last season, but actually probably worse because everyone thought they're not going to make the same mistakes," Sheridan added.
