ANGE POSTECOGLOU has sanctioned contracts for TEN incoming players since he was named Celtic manager just under three months ago.
The Hoops have paid out something in the region of £18.2million in transfer fees for the influx of fresh talent with midfielder James McCarthy arriving as a free agent after leaving Crystal Palace at the end of his contract.
Greek striker Giorgos Giakoumakis sealed a five-year deal in a £2.5million switch from Dutch second-tier outfit VVV-Venlo on deadline day while Benfica winger Jota and Spurs’ US international central defender Cameron Carter-Vickers agreed season-long loan deals.
INSTANT HIT…Kyogo Furuhashi celebrates one of his seven goals since his arrival last month.
Prior to those arrivals, Postecoglou had already brought in 34-year-old former England goalkeeper Joe Hart, also from the London club, defenders Josip Juranovic, Carl Starfelt and Liam Scales, winger Liel Abada and versatile forward Kyogo Furuhashi.
On top of that, the Hoops have done good business in landing out-of-contract Sheffield Wednesday pair, utility defender Osaze Urhoghide and midfielder Liam Shaw, as well as Watford’s Republic of Ireland Under-21 touchline prospect Bosun Lawal.
Heading for the exit in the transfer window that has just closed were headline acts Odsonne Edouard (Crystal Palace), Kristoffer Ajer (Brentford) and Ryan Christie (Bournemouth) with a total of up-front fees of circa £28.5million although there will be deductions for sell-on clauses due to previous clubs Paris Saint-Germain, FK Start and Inverness Caley Thistle.
LONDON CALLING…Odsonne Edouard in his new colours at Crystal Palace.
Also moving on in recent weeks have been Jack Hendry (£1.5m KV Oostende), Vakoun Issouf Bayo (£1.5m Gent), Marian Shved (£500,000 Mechelen) and Leo Hjelde (£500,000 Leeds United).
That’s a total of £4million, but, of course, published transfer fees can often vary. The Hoops can also expect a percentage of Scotland international central defender Hendry’s move across Belgium last night to Club Brugge for a fee that has been reported between £5million and £8million. At the least, Celtic can expect an additional £700,000 to their coffers for his quickfire switch of clubs.
Olivier Ntcham, a £4.5million purchase by Brendan Rodgers from Manchester City in June 2017, saw his contract scrapped following a disastrous six-month loan spell in his homeland with Marseille.
The club will also be due a coaching and development fee for teenage keeper Vincent Angelini, grandson of club legend Davie Hay, who joined newly-promoted Watford in the summer. They will receive something in the region of £300,000 for the 6ft-plus netminder.
OUT WITH A SHOUT…Jeremie Frimpong celebrates his first goal at Parkhead against Hibs, but he was quickly on his way to the Bundesliga when Bayer Leverkusen made a move.
Before the arrival of Postecoglou to kick off his massive squad revamp of a team that had completed a dire campaign without a trophy for 11 years, there were January departures of full-backs Jeremie Frimpong (£11.5million Bayer Leverkusen) and Hatem Abd Elhamed (£700,000 Hapoel Be’er Sheva).
The club recouped all of the £3.5million they had spent on Polish striker Patryk Klimala, with only three goals to show for his 28 appearances over a 15-month period, when they sold him to MLS outfit New York Red Bulls in April.
Postecoglou now has four months to concentrate on what he has in front of him, the speculation can be placed to one side until the January window arrives and the rigmarole is set in motion once again.
Let’s enjoy it while we can as the manager gets on with the job of stratagising an exciting way forward with a new-look Celtic.
