All eyes on Kevin Nisbet vs Celtic after summer Parkhead speculation

By David Walton

October 26, 2021

Kevin Nisbet to Celtic was a rumour many supporters were able to get behind last summer, but things haven’t gone to plan for the striker since.

Indeed, Celtic were linked with a potential summer move for the Scotland international after his maiden season at Easter Road. The Scottish Sun reported at the time that Hibs valued their star-striker at £4m. Nothing would come of it.

Instead, he’s had to kick off his second campaign at Easter Road and has so far struggled to repeat the exploits of his first. Nisbet is now only on 4 goals in 14 appearances for Jack Ross’ side ahead of tonight’s game against the Hoops at Easter Road [Transfermarkt].

Only 2 of his goals have come on league duty this season. That’s despite starting all 14 games he’s featured in this term. With only 2 assists to his name also, it’s clear he doesn’t have the same sparkle he was showing just months ago.

All of a sudden, any potential move to Celtic Park looks unlikely in the near future. I’ve hammered the drum for Celtic to sign Nisbet for months. On his day he’s one of Scotland’s best centre-forwards and, under the right manager, could easily do a job at Parkhead. But that dream transfer won’t just come to Nisbet – he has to earn it.

Over the last week, Celtic have been linked with Yokohama F Marinos centre-forward Daizen Maeda [The Times]. A striker who is in-form and is banging in the goals in a division that saw new Celtic hero Kyogo Furuhashi make his name in too.

Kevin Nisbet will need to remind Celtic of his appeal

Tomorrow night, Nisbet will face off against a rejuvenated Celtic defence. And the truth is, if he wants the Celtic support to be talking about him once again, he’ll need to rip it apart. That’s the brutal reality of the task facing him.

Nisbet left his mark on the Hoops last season. He netted in the 2-2 draw at Easter Road back in November 2020 before again firing home back in January in a 1-1 stalemate. Nisbet has a cutting edge about him when he’s on his game, but Celtic would be right to be concerned with his consistency levels.

A January move for the Hibs man looked plausible back in the summer. Now? It looks so far from reality that Nisbet’s main focus needs to be a rebuild of the reputation built up from last season.

The truth is these last few months just haven’t gone to plan for him. Outside of a fine headed goal at Ibrox, the Hibs striker has hardly been a standout this season. He isn’t producing the kind of form that will have Celtic itching to get a deal done.

Tomorrow gives him the perfect chance to throw himself back in the spotlight. Failure to do so and you couldn’t blame him for believing his chances of a Parkhead move are gone for now.

Hopefully, the Celtic defence can snuff him out as we search for our 5th consecutive victory. But the truth is they’ll be up against a talented striker with something to prove. Let’s see who comes out on top.

In other news, The 4 remaining Celtic games Sky Sports will broadcast live in 2021