Since picking up an injury at Celtic in January 2019, Filip Benkovic has completed five full league games, all for Bristol City. The Leicester City player has made cup appearances, been used as an occasional substitute and seen lots of reserve football; there was only a short-term injury to mitigate the lack of game time in the intervening period. This week his loan period at Cardiff City was terminated after his first and last appearance came against Wycombe a week ago.
He arrived on loan at Celtic in the summer of 2018 and looked every inch the 21-year-old prodigy. He is 9 months older than Kristoffer Ajer and at that point was clearly more accomplished than our current most valuable defensive asset.
Kris has kicked on significantly in the years since, at 22, he is without doubt the best central defender to play in Scotland since Virgil van Dijk. Filip will have earned more money than Kris, but even money will be no consolation, as unless he stages an unlikely turnaround at Leicester, his expected career earnings will be less than Kris’s.
There is a morality tale here, although it will be impossible for anyone to learn from it. Filip left Dinamo Zagreb for the kind on money only available in England, irresistible to club and player. His subsequent lack of progress will inhibit no one from following.
Having watched him perform, you and I know more about the player than most, there is certainly potential, although clearly there is more to the picture than was evident from his season at Celtic. We have to assume people in Bristol and Cardiff saw a less impressive picture; potential is not always fulfilled. Would you take him? Of course you would, don’t even try to deny it.
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Clue for the Celtic hat trick player:
Joined Celtic coaching staff 1980.
Andy Lynch?
DFS @ 3.08
You are correct regarding RP.
Just a case of how much will PL overpay to get him.
JH @ £1.2mill was not great business.
GT @ £2mill is a sacking offence.
UNCLE:
Afraid not,sir.
Hat trick question — BL?
MADMITCH:
Celtic 4 Dundee 0
Lennox (3) McNamara senior.with the other.
Andy Ritchie……..or just anyone called Andy.
Bobby Lennox? Only one I can imagine would be old enough to be a coach in 1980
UNCLE:
Was at the Real Madrid game at Celtic Park and whatever happened Big Andy ran over to a steward and someone shouting Hey big man thats the fastest I’ve seen you moving in years”.
BHOYJOEBELFAST on 7TH JANUARY 2021 4:13 PM
Was also in attendance that night ……wisnae me.
What I don’t get is if Lenny is going in the summer, why not now??? Leicester City insisted that Brendan joined in February, why? So he could assess his team and players until the seasons end then be ready for the new season on August.
What do we do. Get rid of Lenny end of May, get a new manager in June, when players are on holiday, then he will have a fortnight to do all that Brendan had 4months to do and then (hopefully Europe).
It’s a joke I tell you
SCHUMMI
UNCLE:
Great night right beside the jungle,with my brother in law,who,sadly passed away last year.
Schummi on 7th January 2021 4:21 pm
What I don’t get is if Lenny is going in the summer, why not now??? Leicester City insisted that Brendan joined in February, why? So he could assess his team and players until the seasons end then be ready for the new season on August.
————-
You’re assuming that Lenny won’t be here next season.
TH @ 4.31 — the nightmare scenario.
DD sticks it to the support in a big way by keeping NL in position.
Hopefully the 30K crowds will get the message across.
Schummi
As usual itl be a finacial decision.
Benkovic on his day is a good cb but its a worry he couldnt get a game at cardiff..does he have attitude problem..or is he always injured cos hes good enough for them.
Tbh would a cb who really wants to play for the jersey and attacks everything.think Declan Gallaghers a much better fit for us.
Great Celtic teams to me always have attacking flair and great goals but also everybody has a bit of dig about them and we all look after each other.At the moment i think our team lacks the dig.Lets buy players who have the skill but can also look after themselves and their teammates
Hail Hail
DG — Interesting range of posters supporting the move.
Will we see their like again if he signs.
Astroturf is so last decade.
Yesterday, I posted the sevco head to head results, for the past 4 years.
It is clear that they have caught up and overtaken us on this measure.
The decisions, and the timing of those decisions, between now and May are going to signpost our intentions for the next 3 or 4 years.
The rags would have a field day with Gallagher
BADA
So would the refs.
Some of the posters on this thread ought to have a word with themselves. Quoting the Sun as an authorative source on Celtic. The MSM are no friends of our club and -shock- horror have been well known for spinning stories against our club and with the Record known for printing lies.
I remember not so long ago when you would be embarrassed quoting the Sun and the Record.
The anti Celtic narrative on here is shocking. Someone is quoting how Sevco should be an example to Celtic. After 9 titles and 12 in a row and after Rangers cheating to keep pace with us and going into Liquidation we are supposed to follow their example.
I despair
!!BADA BING!! on 7TH JANUARY 2021 4:57 PM
“The rags would have a field day with Gallagher”
Aye, they probably would BADA, which again shows up the need for a good PR person at the club to counteract this. por cierto
Perhaps they should build THAT wall round the Capitol building?
What has Gallagher been up too then?
BIGBHOY:
Spot on @ 5.01pm
We know, of course, about posters on forums. “Not all sharks swim in the ocean” por cierto.
PHILBHOY on 7TH JANUARY 2021 5:07 PM
What has Gallagher been up too then?
Baseball attack on a guy, him and a friend, 2015, por cierto
POR CERTO
Thanks!
Perfect for us then.
BIGBHOY- when CQN starts having polls to get rid of Celtic players, it is no better than the rags IMO HH
Por Cierto………..
Having a ” good PR” person at Celtic
……………………….won’t result in good PR for Celtic in scoddland, sadly.
There’s little or no mileage in good news stories or apparently good media relations with the Champions Of Scotland.
A “good PR Person” does not equal good PR. We could invent a cure for Covid and the hun media would frame the story negatively. We’d still have a good PR person and be treated badly in the media.
HH
The problem is scoddish.
Just googled the Gallagher assualt.
Give him a miss I say.
PC- the closest thing we have to a PR guy ,is Gerry McCulloch, who is a big ‘ old f$#m’ fan….
…The @&£ %*&& is where the story, money and jobs is………….
leave him where he is , couldn’t leave us quick enough , injury prone ,we have enough players with glass legs and a soft attitude, only made 1 appearance for Cardiff and that was as a sub , we are Celtic we can do much better than this , BR would welcome the player’s return to us , I bet he would.
Philbhoy@5.15
Agree 100%
Surprised papers didn’t describe him as “former Celtic prospect “ in their reporting.
Surprised that we haven’t got anyone in yet.
Losing MMcK to Belgium would suggest that we are not working flat out.
At least it gives us another ex prospect to follow.
so that’s how far we have slumped and we are looking at Benovic , heaven help us.
Seemingly there were $6mill reasons that we didn’t sign him.
The US would be a great place to prospect talent — 5 years agao.
Our efforts have the half hearted look we have come to expect from PL.
Surprised that we haven’t got anyone in yet.
not really , we are still on our holiday’s.
We signed the desperately needed Centre Half Yet 🤣