Stephen Welsh is arguably having the best year of his career so far.
The Celtic academy graduate, who made his first team debut in 2020, had spent years as a squad player prior to moving on loan to Belgium last January.
That move was so-so, but in joining Motherwell in the summer, Welsh probably never could’ve seen this coming.
Motherwell sit fourth in the Scottish Premiership, eight points off the top and just two points behind Celtic, having played the Hoops off the park last month.
Welsh has been one of their main success stories, and clubs are now reportedly circling for a January move.
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Aberdeen’s hurdles to sign Celtic’s Stephen Welsh
Celtic have decided against recalling Welsh, with club figures reportedly ‘delighted’ at his progress at Fir Park.
But another Scottish Premiership side do want Welsh in the door in January, in the shape of Aberdeen.
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With Wilfried Nancy out the door, Celtic could change their stance on Welsh if O’Neill wants to bring him back into the side.
They could also recall him with the intention of selling – and the Daily Record report that Aberdeen have made an approach to sign Welsh.
But the deal is described as a ‘long-shot’, not least because Celtic only have until January 14th to recall Welsh – any club signing him would need the Hoops to recall first.
Additionally, there is the obvious factor of agreeing a fee with Celtic who are notoriously hardball negotiators. Given that Welsh’s value could increase between now and the end of the season, that wouldn’t be straightforward.
Lastly, Aberdeen don’t have a manager. Jimmy Thelin was sacked and is now in talks for a move to Australia, so sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel is prioritising their managerial search.
You can file this one under ‘unlikely’ for this month, given the number of obstacles in the way.
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Celtic’s Stephen Welsh on Scottish football ‘myths’
Speaking to the Motherwell website last week, Welsh praised their style of football under Jens Askou, saying it dispels ‘myths’ about Scottish Football.
“I was told when I was young that I needed to play on the halfway line and that I needed to be good on the ball. If you’re not good on the ball, you’re not going to play for Celtic.
“I feel I’ve managed to bring that into the team. We need to be good on the ball, and we need to be brave, and having midfielders like Elliot [Watt], Lukas [Fadinger] and Oscar [Priestman], they always want to be on the ball, which is a dream for a centre-back.
“But also, the boys around us centre-backs, the full-backs and also Liam [Gordon] and Paul [McGinn] – have been outstanding.
“They’re probably not as used to being on the ball because they’ve maybe not played this way before.
“You need a manager who is going to come in and implement a style and ensure everyone knows their roles. I always think it’s a bit of a myth in Scottish football that Scottish centre-halves can’t play this way.
“But see, if they’re coached in a certain way, they absolutely can.
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