Despite Celtic’s on-field success, there are still questions regarding the best way to promote youth talent into the senior fold at Parkhead.
Evaluating Brendan Rodgers’ squad, club captain Callum McGregor and one-club man James Forrest embody two perfect examples of the transition from academy to the first-team set-up.
Anthony Ralston and Stephen Welsh have also established themselves as valuable members of the group who know more than most what it takes to get silverware over the line on a regular basis.
However, there is no denying Celtic have suffered a talent drain in recent years, with a host of promising young stars such as Ben Doak, Daniel Kelly and Rocco Vata opting for alternative paths as they make their way in the game.
Finding ways to bridge that gap remain to be determined, but Aiden McGeady has now offered some valuable advice from his own journey coming through the ranks.
Aiden McGeady on Celtic youth development
Speaking to The Herald, McGeady has delivered a ‘simple’ message in regards to youngsters looking to secure a first-team breakthrough at Celtic, indicating that self-expression must be the main pillar in coaching circles alongside an understanding that only the strongest stand a chance of making it.
He explained: “It’s really simple. There’s no pathway if you’re not good enough to displace a first team player. No manager is ever just going to get rid of three or four players and almost set a team up to give young players a chance. That’s not how it works.
“A manager is looking after his job. He wants the best players on the park. So, you have to prove that you’re good. People say to me, how did you have such a long career? Well, why? Because I proved I was better than the guys that were ahead of me. That’s the way football is. Football is dog-eat-dog. It’s a ruthless environment.
“Young players coming through nowadays, they keep talking about the pathway, and that’s fine. But how come other teams and other countries can have a conveyor belt churning out talent year after year after year? What are we doing wrong here? It can’t just be in the water, is it?.
“It’s clearly in the fundamentals that they’re being taught from a young age filtering up the chain. Whereas here…it’s quite an easy throwaway comment, that one, that there’s more foreigners now, there’s more money. Well, there’s not more money. When I played for Celtic, I came through into probably one of the hardest Celtic teams to break into.
Later, he added: “I don’t want to go off on a rant here, but there’s a lot that could be looked at. I think fundamentals from an early age has got to be the biggest difference. These other countries, France, Holland, Spain, they have conveyor belts of world-class talent.
“The fundamentals are in ball mastery, and understanding it shouldn’t be for kids of six to be thinking about positional awareness and tactics or how to build out from the back. Go and express yourself. Go and enjoy your football. That’s surely what it’s about.”
Celtic should be a hotbed for rising talent
Admittedly, the globalisation of football and the advancement of scouting tools throw up endless possibilities regarding incomings. Still, there should also be room for academy stars to showcase their talent in the senior fold.
Rodgers has vowed to bring youth talent at Celtic during his second spell in charge, so hopefully, there will be movement on that front later down the line.
Either way, there is plenty to be positive about across all aspects of the club, which is the main focus for now.
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