Lennoxtown graduate and current Celtic shot-stopper Conor Hazard is now free to speak to clubs regarding a pre-contract in the summer.
Celtic had reportedly been set to offer Hazard a new contract last month. The Scottish Sun had reported that talks had been ongoing since the summer and that he was closing in on a new deal.
This also came at a time when he was seemingly the Celtic number one. With Vasilis Barkas and Scott Bain failing to inspire, Hazard came in and did himself no harm.
The Northern Ireland international reportedly rejected a new Celtic contract in the summer [The Courier]. It wasn’t clear why that was the case, but given he was third choice, it would appear he wanted more first-team minutes.
Current Celtic boss Neil Lennon also owes him a lot too. Lennon has been consistently talking about how Celtic winning a treble last month is vindication for him staying in his job. It was only won because Hazard made two crucial penalty saves in the final against Hearts.
Lennoxtown graduate Hazard more than merits further game-time at Celtic
For some, Hazard is too concerning when he’s trying to win battles in the air. Some mistakes against the likes of Hearts and Hibernian respectively in that area had some supporters raising an eyebrow.
However, it’s also worth noting some of the crucial saves he’s made in recent weeks. Hazard has played six times for the club this season and has been a part of some impressive results.
Despite some of his errors, Conor is actually unbeaten in the sticks. He’s picked up wins against Lille, Kilmarnock, Ross County, and Hamilton respectively. He was also in the sticks for recent draws against Hibs and Livingston too.
The last thing we should be doing with him is allowing him to leave for nothing in the summer. Remember, he’s only 22 and has already effectively won Celtic a Scottish Cup. That’s brilliant stuff, and at the very least deserves the opportunity to develop further at Lennoxtown.
Vasilis Barkas will of course remain Lennon’s number one. That’s fine. But there’s no reason why Hazard can’t also get plenty of minutes in the second half of the season and beyond. He’s proven he’s no worse than anything else we have at our disposal.
We’ll see what happens in the coming weeks. But there will almost certainly be interest in the Northern Irishman. For that reason alone, Celtic have to move quickly to tie him up.
In other news, these English supporters are certainly fans of one out-of-form Celtic star.
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