Celtic have been rocked by something Mark Lawwell did before his recent departure from the club, acting as a potential "disaster" for the Hoops.
Lawwell leaves Celtic
Last weekend, Lawwell made the decision to leave his role as Head of Recruitment at Parkhead, having been an important member of the backroom team. He and his deputy Joe Dudgeon have both been placed on gardening leave.
It means the search is now on to find a successor to the 33-year-old, who started his job at Celtic in May 2022, having previously been the youth chief scout at Manchester City, highlighting his pedigree. Brendan Rodgers seemingly valued Lawwell's impact at the club, saying after his departure: "As part of the Club’s recruitment team, Mark and Joe have worked tirelessly to bring success to Celtic, and I would like to wish them both the very best for the future."
This news cannot afford to affect Celtic's focus on the pitch, as they look to overcome rivals Rangers in the Scottish Premiership title race this season, and the right replacement needs to come in as soon as possible, in order to have time to target players ahead of the summer transfer window.
Celtic suffer "disaster" with striker update
According to a fresh update from Football Insider, the fact Lawwell didn't include an option for Celtic to sign Adam Idah permanently is seen as a "disaster" by those within the club now.
Norwich City "will look" to move him on for a big fee at the end of the current campaign once he returns to Carrow Road, so the Hoops will now find it tough to snap him up compared to if a clause was in place.
Not having an option to buy has to be considered a big error from Lawwell prior to his exit last week, with Idah's impact since arriving on loan at Celtic in January making the decision look even worse.
Alistair Johnston
Yes
Nat Phillips
No
Aaron Mooy
Yes
Yang Hyun-Jun
Yes
Marco TIlio
No
Yang Hyun-Jun
Yes
Luis Palma
Yes
Kwon Hyeok-kyu
No
Gustaf Lagerbielke
No
Adam Idah
Yes
The 23-year-old has scored five goals in just four Scottish Premiership starts – only six appearances overall – and he has also won an average of 1.5 aerial duels per game in that time. Rodgers clearly rates him, too, recently saying: "The ability he has is incredible, really; he has every tool that you want to play at the highest level. He’s obviously doing that internationally, and it’s been a wee bit hit-and-miss for him at Norwich."
The hope is that Idah is enjoying his spell at Celtic enough to want to move there permanently once the summer arrives, but if other offers arrive from elsewhere, especially from England, there is the risk that his head could be turned by a fresh challenge.
Reporter drops “huge” Celtic transfer plan involving marquee striker
Dermot Desmond is not messing around.
ByHenry Jackson
His impact between now and the end of the season is going to be vital if the Hoops are to secure title glory, but the hope is that this is only the start of his time at Parkhead.