Oliver Burke made all the headlines two years ago with a big money move from Nottingham Forrest to Leipzip but progress since has not gone to plan. He has played 46 minutes of league football for West Brom in the Championship this season, so has lots to do to recover his early promise at Celtic.
Brendan Rodgers has James Forrest in the form of his life this season, while Scott Sinclair is back in the team and scoring goals, but Forrest clearly tired before the winter break and, apart from Sinclair, options on the left are limited. Burke will fill the role hoped for Daniel Arzani, before his injury at Dundee.
Of more strategic interest is the potential signing of striker Vakoun Issouf Bayo, who plays for Slovakian club, Dunajska Streda. The Ivorian, who will be 22-years-old later this week, has played 32 games since leaving Africa, where he managed just nine starts in Tunisia. This is where Celtic now have to operate, in that narrow gap between when a player shows enough form to interest, but before his profile attracts the attention of others.
This has worked well for us before (van Dijk) but will inevitably have a high variance of success.
Although 18-year-old Timothy Weah has appeared in only six senior games, he will be more of a known quantity than Bayo. Celtic have experience of the French youth teams, in particular, Weah’s club PSG, from where they acquired Odsonne Edouard. Still, Weah and Bayo will both need plenty of support to settle.
If both deals go through we will have four strikers for the run in, a vast improvement on hoping Edouard can give us 20 minutes for key away games at Pittodrie and Ibrox.
This is all a bit early in the window for Celtic to be this busy. Unsettlingly so.
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Weah and Bayo would be welcome. Having competition up front will be a big step forward.
We also need a RB. Lustig is a targeted man and an obvious liability that must be addressed this window.
Also, if we’re serious about CL qualifiers then at least one CB is required this window.
A lot of work yet for Celtic to do this window so no back slapping from me just yet.
This is where Celtic now have to operate, in that narrow gap between when a player shows enough form to interest, but before his profile attracts the attention of others
=========
In this regard is Bayo the biggest gamble yet? Others had played anything from 40-80 odd first team matches before we made a move. Bayo has only 25, making his debut in Slovakia last March!
Before that he was with Étoile du Sahel in Tunisia, and I am presuming our knowledge of him there was zero.
Which begs the question, how did his current club find him!
HH
MARADOMINIC,
Another fantasist.”We should have 4 experienced players in by now”.
Inside the 1st week of the window?
What planet do you people inhabit?Who else in any of the leagues has done anything like this?Listening to the Crystal Palace manager,a team in real danger of going down,when asked about getting players in,said”Yes,we are looking everywhere,but its very difficult in this window”.This from an EPL team.In your thinking,this should not affect us.Unbelievable.
‘DEATH THREAT’ SUTTON CALLS IN COPS`
This ( below), from the CQN article above, reinforces the `fact` that there were three incidents.What about te=he forearm to Christie`s face mentioned on here several times. Did that not happen?
, Sutton was scathing about the SFA’s failure to take retrospective action against Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos, who had been involved in three flashpoint incidents – ”
JJ
Paul67 et al
Good luck to all those arriving at Celtic now or later hope one or all of you can make a decisive impact in the second half of the season, a lot to play for. However, as CitiBhoy pointed out this is where we choose to operate not necessarily where we need to. The market for footballers has been skewed, by Russian Gazillionnaires, Oil rich Emirs, or States amongst others to the extent where a £3m player, who never plays, and according to Crystal Palace is not fit to play can be bought for £19m by Bournemouth. £19 million and Bournemouth! You would have needed a hell of an imagination to imagine that becoming a reality. Question is though are we strengthening a team, that by our own standards needs strengthened? Don’t think you have answered that question Paul. Not sure Celtic have, least not yet.
AN DUN,
As I said earlier,if we did get a CH in,how many games would he play?Takes time to bed in.Cant see Brendan dropping any of the present CHs to put a new guy in.Not the way the league is.More important to me,and I am sure most fans will be to get No 8.
Turkebhoy
I can well understand your annoyance and bemusement.
If CQN was born to help redress the balance of negativity from the MSSM, it has been failing miserably of late :-))
Keep plugging away.
JJ
TURKEYBHOY on 7TH JANUARY 2019 2:03 PM
AN DUN,
As I said earlier,if we did get a CH in,how many games would he play?
——————————————————————————————————
Possibly quite a few if Boyata goes in this window.
European expert on talkSPORT saying Weah is an attacking mid and a level above Edouard in terms of talent and ability.
He should be a big success as long as he is able to handle the physical side of the game, and he should
TB @ 1.48
You are very easily pleased.
In case you havent noticed we are currently not playing that well and significant change is needed across the squad.
DB is running down his contract.
PB is on loan and could return soon.
JS has physical and confidence issues.
KA is as raw as sushi.
JH is bambi on ice.
And you would suggest that CB is not an area we need to work on !?!
Aye right.
CELTIC40ME on 7TH JANUARY 2019 2:13 PM
Sounds like he’ll be a difficult guy to stop……….but then , the refs like a challenge.-))
I’m sure I watched Weah in the Champions League youth games against Celtic youths last season. Scored a good goal against us in Celtic’s home tie.
Looked a handful and had decent physicality, at least at that level. If he comes in on an eighteen month loan as I said earlier he could be a good signing.
The big one will be McKenna for £5m plus Hayes,Hendry and Miller…..discuss ?
TurkeyBhoy
We’re losing Boyata and Benkovic come the summer. Boyata possibly before the end of the month.
A CB bought now doesn’t have to start, time to bed in and get some game time prior to the summer would be very beneficial.
The immediate priority is of course the league but having qualifiers in July relying on Ajer and Simunovic with Hendry as back up is a frightening thought.
I should have said, that because the league is the priority then you have to prioritise a right back over a CB this window.
But get both and give BR the backing he deserves.
HOT SMOKED on 7TH JANUARY 2019 2:00 PM
‘DEATH THREAT’ SUTTON CALLS IN COPS`
What about the forearm to Christie`s face mentioned on here several times. Did that not happen?
—————————-
Saw this mentioned a few times too, but haven’t seen the incident on video – had my head in my hands during much of the game too, so never saw it live either.
Does anyone have a link to this incident / can anyone confirm whether they saw it live or on the TV?
HH
BGFC
Robinbhoy
Yes, let’s hope he’s an excellent addition.
Trad 88
Etoile Du Sahel are one of Tunisia’s best teams. As a club, they are ranked 189th in the world, 3 places behind Anderlecht and ahead of Newcastle and Qarabag (Celtic are 65th but it’s a fairly useless scale cause their are 2 Estonian clubs rated higher than us). Safer to llok at FIFA’s country rankings whereTunisia is ranked 26th, 12 spots above Scotland.
I suspect we have scouting info on all Africa’s top clubs but knowing about players does not mean they are fancied yet, some are just on the keep monitoring list. Now he has gone on to be a success in Slovakia (ranked 27th , 11 spots ahead of us), he is in the early stages of proving himself to be more than a “prospect”, horribly mis-used term that it is.
That means more clubs are aware of him and more are developing an interest. No matter how good he looks or what price he fetches, he will truly be a prospect or project until he can prove himself, or not, with Celtic.
!!BADA BING!! on 7TH JANUARY 2019 2:18 PM
The big one will be McKenna for £5m plus Hayes,Hendry and Miller…..discuss ?
—————–
Not a great fan of McKenna – a bit of a lump of wid.
However, he is a big physical presence, a good header of the ball and seems not to suffer from glass knees.
Hayes, Hendry and Miller – for whatever reasons, and whether you agree with those reasons or not – contribute very little to the team.
So – a fairly reliable and solid centre back, first team-ready for the SPL, for three fringe players – I’d probably take that.
Not wonderful, but on balance probably benefits us by filling a slot we have, and reducing squad size, which Brendan wants.
HH
BGFC
well colour me stupid but shirley getting buffalo retrospectively banned is not and should not be the aim here,like big sutton says, cos after all he got result, the one to really set sights on (cough) is cheat-hun, if he gets a long term ban and demotion it tells a other officials that bad choices are an danger to their career that would make them think twice and buffalo with his ilk would think twice about weather they might ‘get away with it??’
SucculentLamb
Hi Kev!
Bada Bing
I think I would literally cry if we got McKenna. An awful player who will have us continuing the cycle of European misery nights.
SETTING FREE THE BEARS FOR RES. 12 & OSCAR KNOX on 7TH JANUARY 2019 2:32 PM
SucculentLamb
Hi Kev!
Kev who ?
Baca Bing I would have McKenna in a heartbeat, it’s Scotland we play in and he knows the terrain out there plus he has a bone tae pick with the talcum powder nose sniffer.
We have gone the foreign route, other than WVD, and he sold the jerseys in Europe, it husnae really worked.
Attack is said tae be the best line of defence, a few young attackers in might give our beleaguered defenders a break. Anyway Celtic have always been an attacking and entertaining side, even MON who built his sides around strong defences, Matt Elliot anyone, knew that although he did stiffen up our powder puff side, stiffened a few thugs out there tae, Henke down at Rugby Park comes tae mind.
I forget who mentioned it earlier but McGregor is the only SEVCO player I would take.
We need to show the right attitude, particularly away from home after the break. If we do it’s all in our own hands.
New signings will lift the whole team. Haste ye back Griff!
KEVIN AYERS-
https://youtu.be/Xc9w_7OhmwI
BGFC- Big Wavy- he’s not for me either, rumours won’t go away, Sheep will take Hendry as a replacement, and Hayes was a fans favourite….
CHARLIEBHOY
Exactly.
Morelos is a symptom but the real issue is a cheating ref.
Our fight is to make them accountable for their performances.
Beaton has admitted to his inability to understand and apply the laws of the game so therefor is unfit to fulfill requirements and should be at the very least suspended till he understandstands the rules of the game.
SETTING FREE THE BEARS FOR RES. 12 & OSCAR KNOX 2:30 PM
Thanks, all makes sense.
Only thing I’d say is that he also only played 11 times for Etoile Du Sahel, so still…very little to go on.
But it appears we have seen something in him…lets hope we have got this one right.
HH
What a shit song that is.
Least it has common ground with lawwells signings. Shit.
Empty the rock stadiums and festivals!
It’s the only language they understand.
Us Jungle Rebels only like the good old Rock ‘n Roll
Fan a tic- Beaton’s match report will have been re-written by Fleming and Co IMO, he is a willing patsy for his heroes.
Policy suggestion to Celtic:
Get all the guys you’re not going to use lent out to Aberdeen, Hibs and Kilmarnock – with the clause they are not allowed to play against the mother club.
Box clever.
Always amused to read everywhere and by almost everyone what a ‘difficult’ window this january one is.
Biggest pile of mince and excuse ever.
Its one of two periods in the year you can actually get your cash out and buy some better players than you already have got.
Is it that hard to find a right back better than we have?…..I suggest not.
Stop buying projects and developing other teams players on loan.Take out the cash and back the manager and the judgement of the scouts and coaches who get paid a lot of money to decide who is good and who is not.
It used to be very simple and it is only complicated by bullshit and excuses.
HOT SMOKED
CQN was founded with the tagline Celtic News NOT Lazy Journalism,
Sometimes the news is good and likewise sometimes it’s bad.
Don’t think Paul’s original idea was to give us a front row seat so we could all sit and only applaud like the citizens of North Korea.
Celtic is an emotional rollercoaster and differing opinions are to be expected.
There are many reason’s for the recent angst.
Would you rather we held no one accountable and just take it on the chin?
So far Sevco have signed two loan players who could not get a game for their EPL clubs. We have signed a player who cannot get a game for his English Championship club. I would say their signings will definitely improve them and who knows about ours.
badabing
would take that deal plus one of the no nonsense cb from livi.
LAZYDYNAMITE on 7TH JANUARY 2019 2:50 PM
Very well said.