Celtic have finally got their striker in the door, but the January priorities don’t end there.
Martin O’Neill has left the door open to more strikers coming in this winter, with right-wing and defensive midfield both also being looked at.
But centre-half needs addressing too. Liam Scales and Auston Trusty have excelled under the interim boss, but their back-up options are both in interesting positions.
Stephen Welsh was recalled from Motherwell, appearing against Auchinleck Talbot in the Scottish Cup. But O’Neill has indicated that he could return to Fir Park.
And with Dane Murray seemingly out of the picture, the last week of the window could have a domino effect.
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Celtic’s transfer domino with Welsh, Murray and Amenda
Celtic have been linked with Aurele Amenda, a Swiss international defender who is pushing for a move away from Eintracht Frankfurt.
Plenty of clubs like the defender, however, so he won’t be the only one on O’Neill’s radar.
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Former Bayern Munich defender Jamie Lawrence, who stands at 6 ft 7 in tall, has also had his name mentioned.
David Friel of the Scottish Sun outlined the transfer domino, saying: “He’s already looked at a few. Aurele Amenda was certainly enquired about.
“He’s at Frankfurt, they’ve changed manager, I think the sporting director’s pretty keen to keep him, so I don’t know where that leaves that one.
“You just wonder Celtic will go back in again for him.
“I’d imagine that, if Celtic get a defender in, Stephen Welsh will go back to Motherwell. Whether on loan or permanently? Who knows.
“Personally, I would like to see Dane Murray get a loan move. Dane Murray has so much potential, but he has to play games. He’s at that age now, where he has to go and play games.
“I think if we was put out for loan, there would be a queue of Premiership clubs willing to take him – but Celtic need to look after themselves.
“They need to make sure they’ve got those four centre halves. You saw how good Trusty and Scales were against Bologna, but they’re only an injury or red card away from being really really stretched in that area.
“You won’t see Cameron Carter-Vickers until next season, so Martin O’Neill wants a centre-half – a right-sided centre-half.
“I think he’ll push to get one in the last week of the transfer window, and then that would probably have a knock-on effect in the sense that Welsh or Murray would then go out on loan.”
6 ft 6 international defender with European experience.. does Aurele Amenda sound good to you?
Latest Celtic transfer updates
Motherwell have ruled out selling Tawanda Maswanhise this month, despite O’Neill seemingly scouting him in person last weekend.
Nacho Laquintana is unlikely to join Celtic after holding talks with them earlier this month. He now looks set to return to Uruguay.
Yaser Asprilla is close to joining Galatasaray, with the Hoops being credited with an interest in the Colombian starlet last week.
Julian Araujo and Tomas Cvancara are the two done deals.
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