The Post-Qualifying Plan: Tooling up for The Europa League, but Celtic still look short, Colin Dempster argues…
The reality of no longer being a Champions League club has exposed a harsh, systemic reality at Parkhead. The recent qualifying campaign brutally proved what many had feared since the £22m departure of Arne Engels: the squad’s core engine room and defensive spine lack the European-level steel and tactical floor required to survive on the continent.
With Champions League revenue officially off the table, the board has abandoned the marquee £15m market. Instead, Martin O’Neill must navigate a recalculated five-man structural matrix designed specifically to handle a gruelling Europa League group stage before next Thursday’s transfer deadline slams shut.
The Midfield Rebuild: Capitalising on the O’Riley Pathway
The standout target of this late window is William Clem from FC Copenhagen. Valued at around £3 million, the 22-year-old Danish Under-21 international is represented by the boutique agency AS1, who treat him as their absolute prized asset.
The only reason a player of Clem’s elite defensive ceiling is eager to move to Glasgow is the promise of the ‘Matt O’Riley Pathway.’ His camp knows Celtic is the ultimate European launchpad to turn a modest investment into a £25m asset.
Tactically, Clem represents a rugged, press-resistant single-pivot anchor. His signature would give O’Neill a pure defensive shield, finally freeing Callum McGregor from being completely isolated against aggressive central counter-pressing in European ties.
Alongside Clem, a Celtic delegation has officially travelled to Eindhoven to thrash out a permanent deal for Joel van den Berg. The 19-year-old PSV Eindhoven wonder-kid and Netherlands Under-19 captain notched seven goals and four assists for Jong PSV last season.
He is the quintessential project with pedigree. Van den Berg possesses the press-resistant turning capability and late penalty-box runs required to directly fill the dynamic, line-breaking ball progression vacuum left by Engels.
Resolving the Defensive Spine and Full-Back Depths
Between the sticks, dropping into the Champions League tier has triggered a frantic, late-window shootout for an experienced number two shot-stopper. The analytical eye has turned heavily to Zenit’s 27-year-old Denis Adamov, who is entering the final year of his deal and seeks a European platform.
Adamov offers a dominant presence off his line and is competing for the slot against Wolves’ veteran England international Sam Johnstone, who is available on a cut-price basis. Securing either profile gives O’Neill the reliable, experienced depth needed to push Viljami Sinisalo and protect the squad from a single-injury catastrophe.
For the full-back positions, the Europa League reality means mitigating long-term wage risks through loan structures. On the right, Celtic are actively exploring a loan move for Southampton’s 26-year-old Japan international Yukinari Sugawara.
Boasting elite athleticism and six Bundesliga assists while on loan at Werder Bremen last season, Sugawara provides immediate European experience. His arrival buys crucial developmental time for 19-year-old homegrown prospect Colby Donovan, who cannot carry the right-back burden alone while Alistair Johnston recovers.
On the left, Chelsea’s highly-rated 18-year-old prospect Landon Emenalo has already visited Lennoxtown to scope out a loan move. Emenalo will act as a direct deputy to Kieran Tierney, providing the raw, high-ceiling depth needed to handle demanding Thursday-Sunday fixture schedules.
The Wide Realignment: Durán’s Left-Wing Future
The board has already closed the book on incoming wide players following the outbound departure of Michel-Ange Balikwisha to KAA Gent on a loan-to-buy package. Despite Balikwisha leaving a vacancy on the flank, the trail has gone completely ice cold in the transfer market for a replacement winger.
Standing in for Martin O’Neill at a recent press conference, assistant manager Shaun Maloney explicitly indicated that the coaching staff considers the wide positions well-stocked and covered for the season ahead. Consequently, early-summer scouting targets such as Adrian Blake were shelved in favour of internal versatility and existing squad options.
The club is leaning into the tactical versatility of £6m summer signing Camilo Duran. While the 24-year-old Colombian’s primary designated role is a Centre-Forward, he holds verified positional utility to drift out wide. Critically, Duran is naturally left-footed.
While he notched a superb double from the right side during the 3-0 first-leg win against LASK, the opening on the flank allows Martin O’Neill to utilize Duran’s natural left foot directly down his natural wide channel.
Supported by the £9m arrival of right-winger Haissem Hassan, O’Neill plans to unleash an interchanging front three. This tactical shift allows Kasper Høgh to spearhead the attack centrally while Durán’s robust, left-footed physical running power re-balances the left wing as a direct, traditional crossing threat.
Still Running on Empty
Yet, even if the board pushes all five of these deals over the line before Thursday’s deadline, the sobering reality is that Celtic still look incredibly short.
Relying on an 18-year-old loanee to protect Kieran Tierney’s minutes, a teenager to back up the right-back slot, and two youth internationals under the age of 22 to rebuild a broken midfield spine is a massive gamble.
By clearing out Balikwisha and failing to recruit a natural, proven left-winger, the club has chosen to lean entirely on tactical compromises and internal versatility.
Securing Clem and Van den Berg is now the absolute bare minimum required just to keep our heads above water. Hopefully, there are still a few more stokes in the fire hidden away inside the boardroom before the window slams shut, but as the final hours tick down, it certainly doesn’t look like it.
Colin Dempster
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1 Comment
Don’t agree with your assessment?
Our club is not all about CL football, despite so many trying to make out it is now imo?
The central midfield areas, remains the biggest issue at present?
Yet MoN is trying to implement a more front footballing approach so far this season, which involves Calmac getting in more advanced attacking positions, moreso than sitting in the holding role, he had been occupying for the past 3 seasons imo?
The OX is playing a similar role also. Yet both players offer plenty of experience, and looking for the younger players around themselves, to potentially learn from the experience factor of Calmac and the OX?
Along with Mcardle in the making, it’s longer term planning MoN is taking into consideration, especially as he knows that he won’t be around next season, and unclear how long Calmac and the OX will remain in position also?
Therefore, I don’t believe MoN was really that interested in players, only willing to join our club, based upon CL qualification imo?
Not the right mentality factor required, with players looking at only 8 potential matches, within our 50 plus match season imo?
Admittedly a risky approach with European football in mind, but conveniently forget that the Calmac, Engels and Hatate midfield got the run around on numerous European matches also?
I no longer see a proper defensive midfielder being added, all the while Calmac is in position within our club imo?
Don’t think such a partnership would provide the increased tempo, that MoN is wanting this season, moreso than the fairly static midfield approach, that was in operation for the best part of last season imo?
Personally believe that such an approach taken by MoN, is correct, with the longer term in mind?
If that means a few setbacks in European football this season, then so be it?
But at least the replacement for MoN will have plenty to work with, moreso, than MoN had when he first walked into the situation, that was in existence within our club?
Forming a better core group of squad stability, was always going to be the biggest aim of this window eventually?
Far to open of an approach for CL football, where we will get punished moreso. But plenty of character building will be involved within the setbacks, that can come with such an approach taken by MoN. Which is also a requirement within our club, especially for the younger players getting introduced imo?
The loss of CL income, won’t bother our board whatsoever, especially as such a potential loss is going to be more than covered within the player trading model in existence, and potentially going to grow in value, before this window shuts?
Therefore CL is only regarded as a bonus, but prefer to get a squad in position, in order to make ourselves a decent footballing team, moreso for such a venture?
Showed enough during the Lask tie, that we aren’t ready for such a venture at present?
That doesn’t mean that we won’t be eventually, but getting a more stable approach within a core group, is going to be more beneficial in the longer term imo?
Expecting a turn around of 10 plus players during each summer period, and expecting a CL team in operation, is a nonsense that isn’t going to be achieved on a regular basis whatsoever imo?