John Kennedy has shed some light on incoming Celtic man Liam Shaw and his role come the summer-time as he labeled the youngster as “one for the future”.
Celtic have hardly been a club that goes against project signings in recent years. The likes of Patryk Klimala and Ismaila Soro were signed as such in January 2020. Before that, the Hoops recruited the likes of Luca Connell and Lee O’Connor from clubs down south. Neither man has broken into the first-team.
It was a surprise to hear that Celtic had made their first signing ahead of the new campaign when Neil Lennon confirmed Shaw had signed a pre-contract. However, he arrives at the club with only 17 appearances at Sheffield Wednesday to his name.
His lack of experience shows of someone who’s still learning the game. And Kennedy has hinted that he’ll be one of the next players to go straight to the academy when he joins this summer.
As quoted by the Scottish Sun, Kennedy said: “Liam has been tracked and monitored for a little while now. We are excited by him.
“He is young, athletic and has good qualities. He can play midfield and at the back, and is one for the future.”
John Kennedy hints that Celtic fans may have to wait to see Shaw in action
It’s not surprising to hear this when you see Shaw’s inexperience in football. He never did read like someone who was going to come in and immediately claim a place in our midfield.
However, the phrase “one for the future” could send chills down your spine as a Celtic fan these days. Much was made of the signings of players such as Connell and O’Connor respectively. They’ve come from similar backgrounds in the game and barely been given a chance to shine.
You could be forgiven then for worrying whether Shaw could suffer the same fate. Especially considering he’ll be competing alongside one of those youngsters for a spot in Connell. You wonder whether we should be mainly focusing on the development of the latter.
Of course, it’s no negative having more talent in the club’s youth ranks. We’ve certainly lost enough talented players over the years in Liam Morrison, Liam Hughes, and Barry Hepburn all departing to bigger clubs.
Even so, the picture in the Celtic midfield is getting packed at the youth ranks. Shaw joins a burgeoning list of talent such as Connell, Scott Robertson, and Kerr McInroy in looking to win a place in the side next season. Not to mention the likes of Ismaila Soro, Scott Brown, Callum McGregor, and Nir Bitton who can also play anywhere in the midfield.
But as for Shaw, it looks as though he’s going to be one we have to wait on. Don’t expect fireworks the moment the Sheffield star comes into Lennoxtown. This looks like yet another deal we have to be patient with.
In other news, a reported Celtic target had an absolute shocker last night.
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