Despite significant speculation and opinion that Liel Abada could make a Celtic exit this month, the club are said to be expecting him to contribute in the second half of the season.
Football Scotland reports that manager Brendan Rodgers has rejected the idea of a January move away from the club for the winger, despite interest from other teams to take him on loan or explore a permanent transfer.
Abada has had difficulties this season including a long-term thigh injury but returned to fitness before the winter break and is expected to play a key role as the Bhoys chase a league and cup double.
The apparently imminent arrival of right flank winger Nicolas Kuhn has seen an increase in chatter around the Israeli international over the last few days, with newspaper columns and some fans speculating he won’t be in Scotland for much longer.
Journalist Stephen McGowan opined in the Thursday edition of the Scottish Daily Mail that the backdrop of Celtic fan displays in support of Palestine has increased pressure on the 22-year-old to seek a move away from the Bhoys, increasing the noise around the player’s future.
Celtic boss says Liel Abada is ‘happy’ in Glasgow
In truth, Celtic’s stance shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Rodgers signalled that Abada would likely be staying in comments given last week.
The Bhoys boss said: “Liel’s in a very good place now. It was a challenging time for him when he was out, with everything happening in his country, but he is settled and happy here.”
A fit and healthy Abada will be a significant weapon for Celtic once football resumes next week. The attacker has scored 29 goals and assisted 21 more in just over two seasons of action.
He can be the direct threat needed to break down stodgy defences encountered by the Bhoys weekly.
With his contract running until 2027, Celtic are rightly in no rush to part ways with him, especially with important silverware on the line in what could be a tight title race.
In other news, Nicolas Kuhn has heart set on Celtic move despite German and Italian interest; arrival timeline.
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