Celtic scouts were in attendance for a match in Croatia this week, with local source vecernji.hr reporting (live match updates, 30th minute) that the Hoops were one of a number of teams watching as Dinamo U19s team beat their Man City counterparts 1-0 in the UEFA Youth League on Wednesday.
Head of Football Operations Nick Hammond has already undertaken a review of Celtic’s scouting and recruitment processes and now he’ll be hard a work utilising his network in the search for new talent ahead of the January transfer window.
The Croatian outlet reckons that Celtic, Benfica, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United and Atletico Madrid were all looking at the prospects taking part in the match.
Does anyone stand out?
One name that may have been interesting to those in attendance, especially of a Celtic persuasion, is 17-year-old Josko Gvardiol.
Not only is he a highly-rated young player already breaking into the Dinamo senior side, but of late, there are signs that Celtic are on the hunt for a new young centre-back.
We have Christopher Jullien, Kristoffer Ajer and Nir Bitton all available right now, but with Jozo Simunovic struggling with injuries and Jack Hendry barely a part of the first-team squad, bringing in another talented defender wouldn’t be the worst idea.
There have been reports this month that Hammond has personally scouted Carlisle United teenager Jarrad Branthwaite too (The Scottish Sun). That such a senior figure was in attendance having a look suggests we’re keen on adding in that position.
Gvardiol is the closest to fitting that kind of profile and we do have a track record of recruiting a defender from Zagreb, chiefly the aforementioned Simunovic.
Who is he?
As mentioned, he’s still just 17 but at 6ft 1in (Transfermarkt), is well on his way to having the physical stature to stand out as a central defender.
Three appearances for Dinamo’s first-team this season show he is on the precipice of making a real breakthrough.
One of those appearances came as a start in a 1-0 league victory over Inter Zapresic, with the player scoring the only goal of the game. Quite an impact to make at such a young age.
Named on the bench for the vast majority of their matches this season, it seems the youngster is a valued member of the squad.
Despite his young age, he’s already turning out for Croatia’s U21 side too.
It’ll probably always be a mystery who exactly Celtic were scouting, if anyone in particular, but for me, Gvardiola looks to be the stand-out candidate.
Perhaps a name for you to consider moving forward.
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