Dean Smith left buzzing with Celtic deal as Brendan Rodgers makes it clear Bhoys miss out on “asset age”

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Charlotte FC head coach Dean Smith has been talking up his club’s move for Liel Abada as Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers laments his exit.

Abada has completed a £10m move to the Major League Soccer side, calling time on two-and-half-years with the Scottish champions.

The Israeli international was an exciting goalscorer during his time in Glasgow but had determined his future lay elsewhere after a difficult 2023/24 campaign off the pitch.

Dean Smith on signing Liel Abada from Celtic

The Charlotte boss said [MLS]: “He’s a player that I know well coming from the UK. I know he’s been playing in Scotland, but there are not many English people who don’t know about Celtic and Rangers players because they’re always in the news and they’re on the TV a lot.

“They’re both two big clubs and to get a player of his calibre and the consistency he’s had in the last couple of seasons with Celtic is a big coup for ourselves, I believe.

“He’ll add creativity in the final third. He scores goals and he creates goals. I think the last two seasons he’s probably scored 10 and created seven or eight. If you’re getting a player, a wide player that’s having 18 goal involvements a season, then that’s a good player.

“We believe that Liel Abada will be the right player and the right person with the right character.”

Brendan Rodgers laments Liel Abada Celtic exit

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers, meanwhile, has made it clear he has been left sad by Abada’s departure, feeling that the Bhoys had the chance to realise the Israeli international’s true potential at the Bhoys.

Rodgers said in a media conference on Friday when asked if his exit was a disappointment in football terms: “Absolutely. He’s really only at the beginning of what I would call the ‘asset age’ – between 22 and 29 years of age. That’s where you grow and develop, then find yourself at the top of your game. He was 22, so he’d just begun that really.

“It’s desperately sad that we haven’t been able to see him here for longer because I feel he will grow and develop.

“He’s got a natural instinct to score goals. He’s really a striker who plays wide. You look at his movement, you look at his intuition in the box to get goals and of course, any team will always want that.”

Abada certainly has a bright career ahead of him and Major League Soccer could be the perfect environment for him. We’ve seen former Giorgos Giakoumakis enjoy success there since leaving Celtic.

It’s unfortunate for all parties that we never got to see what Abada is truly made of in Scottish football but what he did contribute has left a lasting mark and helped deliver big trophy success.