Celtic could be set to sanction the sale of one of their senior players next year, with the star himself admitting that he may be tempted to leave should his game time not improve ahead of January.
Celtic’s summer departures
The Hoops sanctioned the sales of ten players in total over the summer, with Jota being their most high-profile departure after he left to join Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Pro League. Meanwhile, a handful of players were sent on loan to English Championship and League One clubs following Brendan Rodgers’ return.
|
Permanent Exits |
Loan Moves |
|---|---|
|
Jota (Al-Ittihad) |
Sead Haksabanovic (Stoke City) |
|
Carl Starfelt (Celta Vigo) |
Liam Shaw (Wigan Athletic) |
|
Albian Ajeti (Gaziantep FK) |
Adam Montgomery (Fleetwood Town) |
|
Conor Hazard (Plymouth) |
|
|
Vasilis Barkas (FC Utrecht) |
|
|
Ismaila Soro (Beitar Jerusalem) |
|
|
Osaze Urhoghide (Amiens) |
The Scottish Premiership side will have Joe Hart, Scott Bain and David Turnbull reaching the expiration of their deals at the end of the season (Celtic contracts), so there’s a chance that they could also be heading for the exit door in January.
Furthermore, Rodgers may additionally be losing Mikey Johnston, with the left-winger spending last season on loan at Vitoria Guimaraes having fallen in the manager’s pecking order (Transfermarkt – Johnston statistics).
The Republic of Ireland international’s game time hasn’t improved upon his return, though, with the 24-year-old making zero starts and just one substitute appearance in the league this season (WhoScored – Johnston statistics), so he’ll know that a move elsewhere is the best solution should he want to get regular minutes under his belt.
Mikey Johnston drops exit hint
Speaking to The Daily Record, Johnston admitted that he could leave Celtic should he not be able to nail down a place in the squad under Rodgers before January.
He said: “No player is going to be happy when they’re not playing. Ultimately, it’s up to me and I need to try and force my way into that team. I have until January to do that and I will try and give it everything to do that, but we just have to see what happens.
“I’ve not spoken to the manager much in the last sort of month, we’ve had chats here and there. It’s tough decisions for the manager to make and ultimately it’s up to me.”
Johnston’s “excellent” style of play
Whilst Celtic haven’t given Johnston a fair chance to prove what he’s capable of this season, he’s been showing the potential he’s got since the start of his career having clocked up 36 contributions (19 goals and 17 assists) in 126 appearances.
The Glasgow-born talent also has the versatility to operate across the frontline and as an attacking midfielder, so he’s an extremely useful option for Rodgers to have in the building should he ever need to provide cover in other positions.
Parkhead’s “excellent” attacker, as hailed by journalist Josh Bunting, has seen the club secure 11 trophies during his time on the books so he will possess a fantastic winning mentality and desire to achieve, meaning that the boss should perhaps retain his services and give him more of an opportunity moving forward.