Consensus is forming on exciting Celtic pathway for young defensive duo

By Euan Davidson

March 3, 2022

If you don’t know the names of young Celtic defensive duo Bosun Lawal and Dane Murray, then you will before long.

The two have been widely-heralded young talents for years. The former, Lawal, since well before joining the Hoops, and the latter for years and years in the Academy.

Yesterday, Dane Murray’s leadership exploits were covered in detail. Since his pre-teens, he’s been a key influence to the players around him. He’ll surely build on two decent performances for Celtic in Champions League Qualifying. It certainly wasn’t his fault that Midtjylland progressed, and his confidence on the ball was astonishing for his age.

Lawal, meanwhile, was last season’s Watford Academy Player of the Year [WFC]. Now coming back from injury, and highly-rated by Tommy McIntyre, he’s a big boost to the B Team. What we’ve seen from him at Celtic B has been confident, accomplished defending. His intelligence and physique are both beyond his years.

So it’s exciting then, to hear anecdotal evidence of the plans Celtic have for the young defensive pair. A report in The Athletic said: “Ask people close to the B-team who looks the most exciting talent… and one name tends to crop up more frequently than most: Murray.

His centre-back partner Bosun Lawal is very well-regarded too, and there is enthusiasm about the possibility of their solid partnership extending to first-team level over the next few years. …Murray is where essentially everyone comes to agreement. He has the ability, the mentality and the physique to become a first-team player at Celtic — and sooner rather than later.”

Young defensive duo Bosun Lawal and Dane Murray could be Celtic first-teamers before you know it

It’s worth remembering what Ange Postecoglou has already said about youth development, and how that pertains to Celtic defensive duo Lawal and Murray.

In December, Ange said [Celtic FC]: “It’ll be ideal for me if we can always, every year, top up with players coming through our own processes.

“Meaning that they already understand how we play, they’ve already worked with us, they understand the club and its values and the expectations around it. It makes a lot easier [than] trying to bring in a whole new breed of people every sort of 2 or 3 years.”

Cognisant of the uncertainty around Cameron Carter-Vickers, and the long injury wait for Christopher Jullien, it’d be no surprise if Celtic boss Postecoglou was thinking about defenders. What a beautiful thing it would be, then, if Postecoglou could use Celtic Academy players in the form of Lawal and Murray.

Obviously, Ange has looked to Murray already. Ideally, in Celtic’s strategy, the pair would have the ability to carry the ball. To make progressive passes, and be comfortable driving forward, a la Kris Ajer.

Are they ready? There’s no way of finding out other than to try them. That won’t happen this season, but there’s certainly a progression plan for the duo. There has to be, it’d be a criminal waste for either player to not have a route to the first-team.

It seems like a case of when, and not if for this young defensive pair at Celtic. The excitement around them is more than justified.

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