Adam Idah’s move from Celtic to Swansea City came as a surprise.
It was just over a year ago that the Hoops paid £9 million for the Ireland international to bring him from Norwich to work under Brendan Rodgers.
After arriving on loan the previous January and making an instant impact, there was much clamour for the striker to make his move to Glasgow permanent.
He racked up 20 goals last season, despite battling with Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi for a starting spot.
So when a reported £7 million fee took him to South Wales this summer, eyebrows were raised – but in Swansea, they are delighted to have secured his services.
We are really happy to have Adam Idah says Alan Sheehan
Brendan Rodgers has said that Idah didn’t ask to leave Celtic, so the Swansea project was clearly able to convince him.
The Swans finished 11th in last season’s Championship, with interim boss Alan Sheehan earning the permanent gig after turning around the team’s fortunes when he replaced Luke Williams.
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As an Irishman, it isn’t hard to understand why Sheehan was desperate to bring Idah to the club. Speaking to the media ahead of his side’s fixture against Hull this weekend, he was high in his praise of Celtic too.
He said: “Celtic are a huge football club and the expectation on that football club is massive. So for us to have the opportunity to present to him, to show what we are and what we want to be and where he fits into it, it makes it a great signing for us.”
“I am really happy to have him here and we will protect him, we will look after him, we will get him to a place where he is good.
“I say that to all the new signings coming in – it is not how you come into a club, it is how you leave a football club. This is the culture, this is what we do, these are the fundamentals of how we work every day.”
For Idah, this is another crack at the Championship, where he fell out of favour at Norwich prior to coming to Glasgow.
Will Kelechi Iheanacho be an upgrade on Adam Idah?
Rodgers had initially made it clear before the goalless Glasgow Derby draw at Ibrox that Idah would not be allowed to leave without a replacement coming in.
However, this didn’t happen for, in Rodgers’ words, whatever reason. Celtic were left scrambling for a free agent striker after the window had closed.
This resulted in the arrival of Kelechi Iheanacho after his release from Sevilla. The Nigerian clearly wasn’t the Hoops’ first choice, but he is familiar to Rodgers.
The big question will be whether he can be an upgrade on the Irishman – he certainly is in terms of experience, but it isn’t always as simple as that.
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