The squad areas Celtic could look to revisit in the January transfer window

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The dust has settled after Celtic’s summer transfer window and most supporters will be satisfied with the level of incomings.

Despite waiting until the last week for the market to ignite fully, Brendan Rodgers brought in eight new arrivals to strengthen his first-team squad.

Kasper Schmeichel and Viljami Sinisalo were first through the blocks to give the goalkeeping position a new look. Meanwhile, Paulo Bernardo and Adam Idah returned following successful loan spells in 2023/24.

Meeting parity with last term, Celtic then went on to add Alex Valle, Luke McCowan, Auston Trusty and record £11 million signing Arne Engels in the final seven days of the window.

Now happier with the options at his disposal, Rodgers will feel his side are in a good place to challenge on several fronts. However, he will also be closely monitoring where he can bolster further in January, so where could he look to prioritise?

Celtic could look to add another body in the wide areas

On the flanks, Celtic have five senior players vying for positions on either side – Nicolas Kuhn, James Forrest, Daizen Maeda, Hyunjun Yang and Luis Palma.

Suspicions that the reigning Scottish champions would add to their pool of wide options were pertinent. Still, they stuck to their guns and rejected approaches for Palma from Bundesliga and Ligue 1 clubs.

That doesn’t mean advances weren’t made to try and recruit in that area. The Bhoys saw an enquiry for Lazio winger Gustav Isaksen quashed last week, while Royal Antwerp’s Michel-Ange Balikwisha was also on their radar.

Five bodies will be enough to see Celtic through until January. Nevertheless, injuries are always a possibility and form dips also have to be considered. Given the January window is usually an exercise of putting the finer touches to a squad, you wouldn’t be surprised if they revisit the situation once it opens.

Celtic may consider bringing in another striker

Rodgers made it clear when Rocco Vata departed for Watford earlier this summer that he was keen to have three strikers competing for places in the side – two vying for the number one slot and a younger figure behind them to offer support.

Kyogo Furuhashi and Adam Idah will be flipped between in that respect. The Irishman also made it clear that Maeda can fill the void when necessary, admitting his priorities lay elsewhere in the market then.

He stated: “I have seen Daizen in his past play as a striker. With the two guys that we have, I’m fairly comfortable that if I needed a third one I can put him there, and he can do the job. He’s really shown that he’ll score goals. He’s different to the other two, but he can still score goals.”

Maeda is certainly capable of playing in a central striking role. Still, you would rather have him in a wide berth if given the choice. When he does play through the middle, Celtic are down to four options in the wide areas, leaving another gap elsewhere.

Additionally, if Furuhashi or Idah were to miss games due to injury, the forward line would become thin on the ground. The Bhoys are set for a loaded fixture schedule, so it may make sense to see what is on the market come mid-season if circumstances change.