"That hasn't helped us"; Postecoglou wants Celtic to be quicker in the transfer market

By David Walton

July 19, 2021

Ange Postecoglou has urged Celtic to move quicker in the transfer market after slow summer so far.

The Hoops enter the UEFA Champions League qualifier against Midtjylland tomorrow having failed to strengthen at right-back and centre-back. There are major squad shortages still to be filled, something that Postecoglou will need to get on with for now.

There has been plenty of speculation over potential recruits for the Hoops in recent weeks. Carl Starfelt is reportedly on his way to Parkhead, whilst our search for a right-back continues [Fabrizio Romano].

Celtic have also managed to bring four players to the club in Osaze Urhoghide, Bosun Lawal, Liel Abada, and Kyogo Furuhashi respectively. Yet it could be the case that none of them feature.

And Postecoglou appeared to show some frustration when discussing our transfer situation this afternoon. Whilst he didn’t lay the blame solely with the club, he does believe improvements can be made in how we’re working.

As quoted by STV, Postecoglou said: “I definitely think we probably hesitated a couple of times and could have moved faster on some things. That hasn’t helped us.

“Under normal circumstances, those sorts of processes are fairly straightforward, in terms of ‘Get a player, sign him, get him a plane, take a photo and away he goes’. That process is now taking two to three weeks and that’s where we’ve got to move a little bit more precisely and understand there’s going to be a lag time so we’ve just got to be a little bit quicker.

“I don’t want to say it’s the club being inefficient, it’s just the normal dealings of day to day and it’s the people you’re dealing with as well. ‘We’ll get back to you tomorrow’ is normally okay but getting back to you tomorrow can mean a week’s delay in the process. It’s not just about us, it’s about doing deals. Both sides might have goodwill but the current climate makes it more challenging.”

Celtic boss clearly irked by certain aspects of this season’s transfer window

Whether Postecoglou meant to let his frustration show here or not, he’s clearly irritated by certain aspects of our work this summer. That’s okay. He’s quite entitled to feel that way whilst mistakes can easily be made when bringing players in.

However, what’s disappointing is the lack of urgency shown from the board at times. Dom McKay is the go-to man for all things transfer-related. It’s his job to ensure that the manager gets the squad he wants in place as soon as possible.

But the facts don’t lie. Postecoglou has been left with a squad without centre-back cover or even a reliable right-back. Where is the quality in those positions at the moment?

We have Anthony Ralston certain to start tomorrow night. We have Stephen Welsh in line to partner Nir Bitton as our most recognisable centre-back pairing. That’s simply not good enough, regardless of how it’s dressed up.

Yes, we can all get excited by the prospect of signing a clinical Japanese international striker. We can all be left buzzing by beating Chelsea to a young talent from Watford. But we all know the real problems heading into the UCL lay at the right-back and centre-back position.

Postecoglou is clearly a touch annoyed that this hasn’t been sorted. And given his remarks here, he wants Celtic to improve its pursuit of transfer targets in the future.

In other news: DANISH Report: Midtjylland suffer behind-the-scenes bust-up ahead of Celtic tie