Celtic have one foot in the door with their left-back spot ahead of next season.
For months and months, everyone knew that Kieran Tierney would return; it was just a case of getting it confirmed by the official parties.
Celtic confirmed that much-anticipated news last week, but who will challenge Tierney next season for that full-back spot?
It won’t be Greg Taylor because, not only is he running down his contract, which expires at the end of the month, but it seems as though he is heading for the exit door on a Bosman and could be joining FC Copenhagen, but other teams are also keen.
It leaves Brendan Rodgers in a bit of a pickle because you can’t have Tierney, especially with his injury record, vying for that one spot on his own.
But there is an obvious option staring everyone in the face, according to Ross McCormack.
Celtic backed to bring back Jeffrey Schlupp to challenge Kieran Tierney
Jeffrey Schlupp spent six months on loan at Celtic from Crystal Palace, helping the club secure the Premiership crown, and now he is going to be a free agent.
The 32-year-old, who has racked up 280 Premier League appearances for the likes of Leicester City and Palace, is looking for a new club this summer.
McCormack told Clyde 1 Superscoreboard, with Celtic playing 60 games a season, he thinks Schlupp is the ‘level’ of player the champions of Scotland are going to bring in to challenge Tierney.
“It’s a tough one,” said McCormack. “It depends on what the player you are signing wants.
“Celtic play 60 games a season. If Kieran Tierney comes in and he is only playing 35, that means they are going to sign another left-back who is going to get 25 games a season. For a backup player, 25 games a season is a very good return.
“In terms of the level they could go and sign, I would imagine it would be something along the lines of a Jeffrey Schlupp.”
Schlupp’s numbers for Celtic
Schlupp won his starting place pretty much straight away, but towards the back end of the season, he was back on the bench, including for Celtic’s Scottish Cup final loss to Aberdeen.
With a pre-season under his belt, on top of the fact that he has got used to life in Glasgow, signing him for nothing wouldn’t result in the club taking too much of a hit.
Yes, Celtic could still sign a much younger left-back, but at least Rodgers knows what he is getting from Schlupp if he re-signs.
- Games: 14
- Starts: 9
- Goals: 1
- Assists: 1
- Clean Sheets: 6
- Man of the Match performances: 1
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