Celtic supporters are still waiting on the Bhoys committing to any January transfer activity but the club will undoubtedly be working on several potential deals heading into the second week of the month.
A sluggish summer window in terms of spend and added quality has left fans looking for new faces to bolster Brendan Rodgers’ squad and provide the boost needed to see out the current Scottish Premiership title race.
The manager himself has called for a profile of signing that should excite everyone but it remains to be seen whether the recruitment staff can deliver what he is looking for.
Here are some of the latest rumours and chat around a pivotal few weeks for the reigning champions.
Joe Gelhardt to Celtic link emerges
The Daily Mail have reported on Monday that Celtic are showing interest in Leeds United forward Joe Gelhardt.
It’s one line in a much wider transfer round-up so there’s no need to put too much stock into this link at the moment, but it is a new name to track on our January transfer list.
The 21-year-old isn’t playing a lot of football at Elland Road just now, making just eight appearances in all competitions this term.
He is contracted to the club until 2027 so this one could well be a potential loan move rather than an outright transfer, with the English market pretty expensive to recruit from.
It’ll be interesting to see if there is any follow-up reporting from Scottish sources on Gelhardt, with Celtic potentially in the market for a new striker to provide support for Kyogo Furuhashi and Hyeongyu Oh.
Chris Sutton’s Celtic transfer priorities
Speaking to Sky Sports, former Celtic striker Chris Sutton named the left-back position as one of his big priorities in this current window.
The Bhoys have an overreliance on Greg Taylor in the position with Alexandro Bernabei nowhere to be seen and likely on his way out of the club.
Sutton said when asked about Celtic’s business this month: “Brendan Rodgers has talked about getting a better quality of player in but he also talked at the start of the season about understanding the model.
“So January is really one to watch out for. Are they going to go for more experienced players, who have been there and done it and are going to cost a hell of a lot of money? Celtic have still got a lot of work to do.
“Where do I think they need to strengthen? Left-back. And the centre-half situation is baffling. I mean, what on earth has gone on there?
“I wonder about the striking position and how that will pan out. There’s a lot of talk about wide players coming in but Celtic have loads of wide players.”
Celtic transfer round-up
Elsewhere, Rodgers has made it clear he won’t be addressing the goalkeeping position until the summer months.
He’s going to assess the situation with Joe Hart towards the end of the season before making a decision on the team’s future between the sticks.
Summer signing Gustaf Lagerbielke has today been linked with a move to Serie A side Lecce, who are said to have contacted Celtic about a potential loan move.
The Swede is currently a fifth-choice defender at the Bhoy and could do with some playing time in the second half of the season.
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