Focus will now turn to next season and trying to continue Celtic’s success.
The overall campaign was an outstanding one for Brendan Rodgers because Celtic won the double, and narrowly missed out on the Treble.
You can bet your bottom dollar that Celtic’s rivals, Rangers, would have loved the Scottish Cup final defeat to Aberdeen at Hampden.
At the end of the day, there isn’t much else to cheer about for them, but a certain Andy Halliday sees it very differently.
The Motherwell midfielder might ply his trade at Fir Park now, but he is still regularly banging Rangers’ drum in the media.
And Halliday had an interesting take on Celtic losing the Scottish Cup final on penalties to Aberdeen.
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Andy Halliday’s Celtic fear after losing Scottish Cup Final to Aberdeen
Rewind back to 2016, and Halliday is playing for Rangers when they beat Ronny Deila’s Celtic in the Scottish Cup semi-final.
That summer, Rodgers walked through the doors at Celtic Park, and the rest is history, because he ate up all the trophies and continues to do so.
Halliday is fearful that history is going to repeat itself, and explained how Rangers winning that cup tie back in 2016 was the ‘worst thing’ that could happen because it seemingly forced Celtic to act, and they did in style.
Speaking to Open Goal, Halliday thinks the same will happen this summer when the transfer window reopens, because of that cup final loss.
“Do you actually think Celtic will invest more, because they lost that final?” questioned Halliday.
“The reason I am saying that is because when we beat Celtic in the semi-final (in 2016). I honestly think it’s the worst thing that could have happened to Rangers, at the time.
“Because Celtic don’t get Rodgers, and they don’t spend a fortune on players, and the gap just got bigger and bigger.
“Do you think, because they lost that final, there is going to be almost like a bigger sense of urgency that they need more players than they actually do, if that makes sense.
“I still think, even with the squad they have got, I think they are big favourites for next season.”
Celtic’s summer transfer to-do list
Kyogo Furuhashi left Celtic in January, and he wasn’t replaced, so the obvious thing to do is bring in another number nine.
If Daizen Maeda is sold, then that’s two strikers or forward players that would need to come in, especially with Adam Idah dividing opinion.
But perhaps the biggest concern is at the back. Cameron Carter-Vickers is the main guy at the heart of Celtic’s defence.
But Auston Trusty and Liam Scales just aren’t producing the high-level, consistent performances needed to take the team to the next level.
And then you have someone like Maik Nawrocki, who, despite playing well when given a chance, is spending more time at home than on the field of play, so another centre-back is in order too.
- A proven striker, two if Maeda leaves
- A back-up left-back to Kieran Tierney, if Greg Taylor doesn’t sign a new contract
- Another centre-back
- A number six to provide Callum McGregor with breathing space
- A wide player after Jota’s injury
- Any replacements for key players who leave
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