Rudi Vata has criticised Celtic’s lack of a plan for his son Rocco.
Vata Jr. had been at the club since the age of seven, establishing himself as one of the most promising players in his age group before making his senior debut at the age of 17.
His dad, Albanian international defender Rudi, made 60 appearances for Celtic in the 1990s and has acted as his son’s agent.
In the absence of a first team breakthrough, Vata joined Watford in 2024 amid widely reported interest from throughout Europe. His Dad has reflected on the departure.
Should Celtic have done more to keep Rocco Vata?
Rudi Vata on his son Rocco’s Celtic departure
Speaking to The Herald, Vata Sr. said: “I was speaking to my boy the other day.
I was telling him, ‘Listen, if you are a kid of 19 or 20 years old and you want to play football to make money you will never make it.
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“Too many kids leave Scotland for England thinking of the money and the players who think only of money will never fulfil their dream.
“I could actually have got a better deal for Rocco. I was with a sporting director negotiating his contract and if I had pushed I could have got more.
“I said to him, ‘what you are offering him is more than enough. He is going to work hard to earn it because right now I’m not sure he even deserves this money for the amount of games he has played?
“I put a clause in for him to score goals and assists and work hard so that he can earn his money from performance.
“Yes the money for my boy was more than what Celtic offered, but in my opinion, Celtic did not have a proper project, they did not have a proper plan or pathway.
“If I was working for Celtic now, I would not sign any more than four or five foreign players for the club.
“I would focus on Scottish talent because who would understand better than the Scottish players what it means to wear a Celtic, Rangers or Aberdeen jersey?
“It’s a sad situation to be in. I see young players from academies now being loaned out to the lower leagues in Scotland until they lose motivation, give in and disappear.
“They don’t get the opportunities because clubs sign so many foreigners. If you are some kind of Larsson or Moravcik or Laudrup, fine.
“But in the Scottish game now you see many average players and they are blocking the path of the young players. So they move to England instead.”
Do Celtic need to offer more first-team chances to their academy players?
Rocco Vata’s spell at Watford so far
Some of the biggest clubs in Europe had been linked with Vata prior to his Celtic exit, leading some to be surprised when Watford won the race.
Nevertheless, the forward made 37 appearances in his first season at Vicarage Road, scoring five goals and earning his debut for the Republic of Ireland national team.
Watford reportedly valued Vata at £20 million as Premier League clubs began to scout the 20-year-old late last year.
He is currently sidelined due to a serious recurrence of a hamstring injury which will keep him out for the remainder of the 2025-26 season
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