SHAW: CELTIC’S STEAL OF THE CENTURY

LIAM SHAW could turn out to be Celtic’s steal of the century.

That’s the view of former Hoops defender Glenn Loovens who charted the progress of Sheffield Wednesday’s 19-year-old versatile star who has agreed a pre-contract with the champions, as CQN reported earlier this week.

The towering teenager can play in in midfield or central defence – provoking memories of a young Kristoffer Ajer when he arrived from FK Start five years ago – and will arrive in the summer with the Yorkshire club receiving £300,000 in a cross-border compensation fee.

Dutchman Loovens, who was signed by Gordon Strachan from Cardiff City in 2008 and remained in Glasgow for four years, also had a five-season spell at Hillsborough just as Shaw was coming through the youth ranks.

The former centre-back, 37, admitted: “I think Celtic have probably got a bargain with this guy.

“Liam was quite young when I was at Wednesday, so he wasn’t involved when I was in the first team.

“But I’ve seen him at least twice this year, playing at centre-half, and I thought he looked really good.

“From then on, I started following him a little bit. He is a guy with potential and he’s still very young, so he still has room to grow.”

Loovens, speaking to the Scottish Sun, added: “He can play multiple positions, which isn’t always a good thing, but time will tell what his best position will be.

“I think he’s made a lot of progress this year.

“I’m not sure what went on behind the scenes at the club, but when a young talent is walking out the door for only a small fee, they must be disappointed.

“They probably invested a lot of time and energy in this kid progressing.”