Belgian ex-pro talks up Michel-Ange Balikwisha to Celtic, compares to Bhoys Invincible

Add as preferred source on Google

With two weeks left to go until the new season starts, the Celtic fans will be eager to see a few new faces at Paradise.

Brendan Rodgers has already sent a message to the Celtic fans about a meeting with Michael Nicholson where he put a timeline on when to expect new players to come to Parkhead.

With Viljami Sinisalo and Kasper Schmeichel the only two summer signings so far, the Celtic boss still has a bit of work to do to strengthen problem areas in the team ahead of not just the SPFL starting but also the Champions League.

One player who has been recently linked to Celtic has been talked up today in the media as former Partick Thistle and Dundee United centre-back, Frédéric Frans, believes Rodgers could be about to sign someone who is as good as Scott Sinclair.

Michel-Ange Balikwisha would be ‘good player’ for Celtic

Frans also played in the Belgian leagues for much of his career and retired after leaving Beerschot in 2023.

As a rival to Celtic-linked, Michel-Ange Balikwisha, Frans has given a lowdown of the winger and it seems that if Rodgers can get him, the Parkhead club will be signing a really exciting player.

Frans said [The Herald Sport print edition page 8], “He’s the type of player who, on his day, can be amazing. But Celtic are buying someone with a lot of potential rather than the finished product.

“To be honest though, he’s a good player, even though there was a bit of flexing of the financial muscle going on from the Antwerp owner.

“He has quite a long, skinny body when you look at him, but is really strong and fast. He has a lot of the qualities you need, with his speed, the dribbling, the technique, and physically he’s pretty decent as well.

“He’s quick, he’s technical, he’s a good player. He’s more of a winger.

“His scoring record is pretty good when you consider that, it’s close to one in four games. He’s only 23 and he’s played something like 160 games, and it feels as though he has been around for a long time. That’s a good number of games for a young guy at just 23, and for big teams as well.

“He’s different to James Forrest, but maybe a little bit more similar to Scott Sinclair. I think Sinclair was probably cutting inside more, so it’s not a perfect comparison, but it is a lot closer.”

At just 23, Balikwisha has already won a Beligian title, a Belgian Cup and Super Cup during his time at Royal Antwerp.

In 124 appearances, the winger has scored 24 goals and created 14. Balikwisha is also extremely versatile and can be used on both flanks as well as the attacking midfield role and as a centre forward.

The former Belgian U21 international certainly fits Celtic’s transfer model so it is now up to Rodgers to decide whether or not the youngster is set to become a Hoops player before the transfer window closes at the beginning of September.