Celtic’s need for Victor Wanyama was shown against Rangers

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Celtic’s midfield options may have quality bursting out of it, but the need for Victor Wanyama in January has never been more evident.

One of our biggest problems yesterday against Rangers was that our rivals looked physically stronger. For large spells, our midfield was posted missing. For the second derby match in-a-row, Scott Brown and Callum McGregor were often on the back foot as they failed to get on the ball.

Much of this was down to the fact that Rangers seemed to be winning the 50-50 duels due to their strength. Credit to them, they played well. Ryan Jack and Steve Davis did the job Rangers needed them to. But from our perspective, it’s now a question of how we rectify the situation.

Back in November, Celtic were linked with a speculative move for Wanyama on loan (The Guardian). If that’s still an option as we head into the mid-season Winter break, then Neil Lennon should be all over it.

He’s exactly the kind of midfield powerhouse we were missing. Wanyama’s strength would’ve had players such as Jack and Davis bouncing off of him. Had we had that kind of player in our engine room to help us with second balls today, it could’ve changed the nature of the game.

Wanyama undoubtedly strengthens our midfield right away

So if Lenny is looking for positions in which he needs to strengthen, which he clearly is (Daily Record), Wanyama could be a necessity for us. The fact that our midfield has looked so lacking in control in recent weeks has been a real issue.

Wanyama’s situation at Spurs hasn’t gotten much better under Jose Mourinho either. He’s only played nine minutes since the Portuguese became the manager (Transfermarkt). In the nine other fixtures he’s been in charge of, Wanyama hasn’t even made another matchday squad.

Mourinho commented towards the end of last month about Wanyama’s situation. He stated that Wanyama was fit, and that makes his situation even more intriguing (Football.London).

Rangers lost to us 2-0 back in September at Ibrox. They splashed out on Ryan Kent and he made a difference yesterday. The time has come for us to find our own blockbuster signing, and a superstar with the Champions League and Premier League experience of Wanyama could prove to be just that.

It’s time we found something fresh for our midfield. Brown, McGregor, and Olivier Ntcham are all good options, but today proved we need a further addition. When you look at his attributes, there’s nobody more suited to the role than big Vic.

Is it a deal we can get done? Why not? After all, he has a strong Celtic connection and needs to start getting game-time again. At 28, he can’t be rotting away on a bench.

Even if it is just a loan option, it gives Celtic some security in the midfield ahead of the summer when we can take another look at things. But make no mistake, it’s time to start taking our rivals seriously, and bringing in Wanyama would be a sign of us doing just that.