Celtic have an important decision to make on prospect after latest summer signing

By Lewis Laird

June 22, 2022

On Tuesday evening, Celtic officially announced the signing of Dundee United goalkeeper Ben Siegrist.

The former Aston Villa man signed a four-year deal at Parkhead and became Ange Postecoglou’s second summer recruit.

Alongside fellow veteran shot-stopper Scott Bain, the 30-year-old is expected to push current Hoops number one Joe Hart and provide back-up for the former England internationalist.

Siegrist’s arrival at Parkhead was met with a lot of positivity from the Celtic support, with Postecoglou adding a solid goalkeeper to the squad on a free deal.

However, the arrival of the Swiss keeper raises the question of what is the plan for the immediate future of Celtic youngster Tobi Oluwayemi.

The England under-19 internationalist is highly-rated by Ange Postecoglou and his staff at the club, having signed fresh terms until 2024 at Parkhead last summer.

Oluwayemi regularly featured for the Celtic B side in the Lowland League last campaign and also trained alongside the first-team goalkeepers at Lennoxtown.

Heading into this summer, with only Scott Bain in his path, many were expecting the young goalkeeper to be given a chance to show his worth during pre-season and potentially challenge for the number two spot.

It is still highly likely that Oluwayemi will be provided with the opportunity to train amongst the first-team squad over the next few weeks in pre-season.

But, it seems unlikely that we will see him anywhere near competitive first-team squads next season, ahead of Siegrist or even Bain after the former Dundee man signed a new contract with the club last year.

What are the plans for Oluwayemi this season?

Ahead of the 2022/23 season, the club have a decision to make regarding where Oluwayemi’s development is best suited.

On one hand, the 19-year-old could remain at the club and spend it playing with the Celtic B side during their second competitive campaign in the fifth tier of Scottish Football.

That would also allow Stevie Woods to continue working closely with Oluwayemi, alongside the three other experienced goalkeepers at Lennoxtown.

The other option would be for the Celtic academy prospect to spend the season out on loan, picking up valuable first-team experience elsewhere.

We have seen this work for several Celtic youngsters in the past, including Callum McGregor, Kristoffer Ajer and Ryan Christie.

At just 19 years old, Oluwayemi has time on his hands when it comes to his development. For a goalkeeper, he is still very young and not ready to be thrust into the number one starting role at Parkhead.

But, a good loan spell or season with the B side could push him to another level, which is why it is so important Celtic have the young shot-stoppers season and potential future planned out.

The signing of Siegrist was a positive one and the correct move to make. However, Postecoglou and those at the club have to be sure they don’t allow it to hinder the development of Oluwayemi.

In other news, Celtic announce revenue set to be significantly higher than market expectations.