As reported by The Daily Mail, former Celtic midfielder Kris Commons has warned the Hoops that failure to invest in central defensive areas could invite scrutiny on the direction the club is taking in the transfer market.
What’s the story?
The Hoops have only added one player to their existing first team squad so far this January, Marvin Compper, with the departure of Erik Sviatchenko meaning that there is no more depth in their defensive line than when they entered the new year.
With big matches on the horizon and improvement needed on existing defenders, former club favourite Commons has weighed in on what they need to do this January.
As quoted by The Daily Mail, the ex-Celt said:
They have a two-legged tie against a very good Russian team and they’ve signed a centre-half (Compper) who isn’t capable of playing in these games. Erik has gone, which has raised questions. Simunovic could go, and is it worth playing a 19-year-old boy who was thrown into the game in Kazakhstan against Astana when Celtic conceded four and it could have been ten?
I know Simunovic and Boyata are brilliant centre-halves but if they are not quite at their A-game then Celtic are going to get found out.
Against Zenit, if the two of them are fit and they are both there then they are more than capable of doing a job.
But if not there will be more pressure and scrutiny put on Brendan Rodgers and the board for not investing in another centre-half.
It’s certainly an issue that is being discussed within the Celtic support, especially in light of the recent news that new signing Compper has been ruled out for the next month after picking up a calf injury.
European dilemma
It’s fair to say that Celtic’s defence have been under significant pressure to improve in Europe this season.
The Hoops conceded more goals in the UEFA Champions League group stages than any other side and while it’s true they competed in a monumentally difficult group that included Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, Brendan Rodgers’ side were arguably ill-equipped to perform to their potential.
The upcoming Zenit clash will put further pressure on their ability to not ship goals at European level and there’s a strong argument to be made for investment in the central defensive positions this month.
The Hoops have fantastic resources at their disposal but haven’t shelled out for a first team ready defender that either has significant potential or is coming into their prime in quite a while.
It may not be enough to overcome the Russians in a one-off tie, but going forward, it’s the key area that Rodgers needs to address in the transfer market.