Chris Sutton calls for three key Celtic signings

Speaking at the SPFL Season Kick-off Party, Sutton identified three positions in urgent need of reinforcement – left-back, winger, and striker.

Despite the return of Kieran Tierney and the emergence of Hayato Inamura, Sutton believes the club still lacks quality depth in defence following the departure of Greg Taylor.

“I think left-back is still an issue,” Sutton said as reported in the Daily Record. “The signing of Kieran Tierney is really exciting, and Inamura’s done well, but Greg Taylor is a big loss. He was integral in that inverted role — helping Celtic control the middle of the park. That’ll be hard to replace.”

Taylor’s tactical intelligence and ability to shift centrally in possession played a significant role in Celtic’s domestic success, and Sutton, perhaps understandably, doubts whether Inamura or Tierney can replicate those responsibilities at the same level consistently. But there have been few left back links with Celtic recently, so it may be Rodgers is prioritising other positions and offering Inamura the chance to prove he can be a realistic rotational option when the league action gets underway.

On the wings, Sutton raised concerns about Celtic’s options following the departure of Nicolas Kuhn and the lack of depth if Daizen Maeda were to miss games, and there will be few within the support who will disagree with the big fella on that one –

“You look at the wide areas — losing Kuhn, even for good money, leaves them short,” he said. “If anything happens to Maeda, you’re in trouble. James Forrest has been brilliant for Celtic, but he’s not going to play every game. Yang was OK last season, and maybe Marco Tillio offers something, but it’s not quite where Brendan wants to be.”

Sutton also highlighted the need for attacking reinforcements after the surprise sale of fan-favourite Kyogo to Rennes without replacing him in January. Which is quite remarkable considering our former striker has already left the French club and moved to English Championship club Birmingham City.

“I never understood why Celtic sold Kyogo — and even more so, why they haven’t replaced him properly,” he said. “He was brilliant in the big games. People will point to his time at Rennes, but he was excellent at Celtic.”

While new signing Shin Yamada has shown early promise, including an eye-catching debut against Al Ahli, Sutton remains unconvinced Celtic can rely on an untested forward to fill Kyogo’s boots.

“You’ve got to replace like-for-like, or at least come close,” Sutton added. “Yamada looks good, but he’s not a proven goalscorer yet. That’s what Celtic need.”

Sutton did offer cautious optimism about £9 million signing Adam Idah, who notched 20 goals last season. But he also acknowledged that Rodgers’ inconsistent use of the Irish striker speaks volumes.

“Idah did well numbers-wise, but he still needs to improve his link-up play and consistency,”
Sutton said. “He was signed as a development player. Brendan didn’t always trust him in big games, and that says a lot.”

Despite the investment in Idah, Sutton believes another established striker is essential to compete on multiple fronts.

“Brendan said in January he wanted to replace Kyogo — they didn’t do that. So that’s still a priority.”

Most Celtic supporters would likely agree with Chris Sutton’s assessment of the positions that urgently require strengthening, especially with the crucial Champions League Play-off rounds fast approaching. In fact, the only real point of contention may be Sutton’s relatively modest request for just three new additions.

Many within the support would argue that more extensive surgery is needed to truly equip Brendan Rodgers’ squad for the challenges ahead, both domestically and in Europe.

Today we remember David Potter, who passed away two years ago today. We want to say thank you to everyone who has already pre-ordered David’s last ever Celtic book, Celtic in the Eighties, which will be published on the fifth day of September by Celtic Star Books.

Celtic legend Danny McGrain has written a wonderful foreword for the book and we will have a limited number of copies available that will be signed by Danny McGrain – if you have already pre-ordered your copy of Celtic in the Eighties you will be getting a signed copy. If you would like to receive a signed copy by Danny McGrain please order now as the number of signed books will be limited. 

David’s widow Rosemary has also written a ‘thank you message’ to the Celtic support for David’s last book. It’s a wonderful tribute to David from his wife on behalf of his entire family that extends right out to his Celtic family. That’s you, me and everyone else reading this or anyone who has Celtic in their hearts.

The link to pre-order your copy of Celtic in the Eighties, signed by the legendary Celtic captain Danny McGrain is below. Celtic in the Eighties is a fitting way for David Potter to sign off as one of Celtic’s foremost historians. We think you’ll love it.