Brendan Rodgers has hinted that Stephen Welsh could be allowed to leave Celtic when the January transfer window opens.
The centre-half has managed just one appearance this season against Falkirk in the Premier Sports Cup.
It has been a difficult campaign for the 24-year-old who, in previous years, had been given more minutes even in cameo roles or the odd start.
This week it emerged that KV Mechelen were interested in signing Welsh on loan after having attempted to prise him away from Parkhead last term, too.
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No move materialised at that time but now Rodgers has dropped a clear clue that the Scotland under-21 cap could be permitted to move on from Celtic if he should choose to do so when the window opens next month.
The manager insisted Welsh was a big part of the fabric behind the scenes at the club even if he wasn’t playing.
However he acknowledged that Welsh may want to see what else is out there at a vital point in his career where he needs game time to avoid stagnating as a talent.
Asked about Welsh’s future, Rodgers refused to give too much away.
Rodgers says Welsh may want to explore his exit options
But as he opened up on the possibility of the player looking to depart, the gaffer also hinted that Welsh would not be the only one likely to leave Celtic.
“Nothing to add to that,” Rodgers replied when asked about Welsh interest. “Stephen again, very much being a part of the furniture here, a great member of our squad.
“Naturally, we will have some players in our squad that will want to play games.
“And Stephen may well be one of those players.
“But he’s a brilliant servant for this club.
Welsh won’t be the only Celtic player allowed to leave in January
“What he gives, the likes of him and Tony (Ralston) plays a little bit more than what Stephen does.
“But these guys are still absolutely critical to the culture of this club.
“But of course, there’s sometimes they then have to think about themselves, and they’ve got to think about their careers.
“So I’m pretty sure there’ll be some movement with some players looking to get game time and play.
“We all respect that.”
Maik Nawrocki and Luis Palma have both been linked with moves away from the club this coming January.
67 Hail Hail told you exclusively that Palma was wanted by two MLS clubs in Atlanta United and Orlando.
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