Well, isn’t that something? Celtic aren’t going to make us wait, they aren’t going to make us sweat, through week of wondering when the deals are going to be done and when the players this squad so badly needs are going to be brought in.
Brendan wants the business – or the juiciest bit of it – done quick. And the club is responding to that and putting the plans in motion. Hallelujah!
There is something nice about reading that a former German international defender flew into Glasgow on a private jet and was then whisked off to Celtic Park for the tour. It’s nice. It has that David Murray type vibe the press used to wet its pants over.
The difference is, we can afford it. The taxpayer will not end up bilked over it.
Now let’s not get too excited. He didn’t sign yet.
But then, the deal can’t be done until the window opens anyway.
Whilst the press is reporting that Leipzig aren’t keen to let him go, neither he nor the club charted a private plane so he could do some sight-seeing.
If he was here for the tour then the deal is just about done.
Also, the words “former German international” are a little misleading. Except not really. Marvin Compper is a former German international, in the way Ian Black is a former Scotland one. He has played for the German national team exactly one time, back in 2008. We’re not signing Jerome Boeteng here. But for all that, I expect this guy to be a significant improvement on what’s here already. He’s 32 and hugely experienced. He has played in Germany and Italy.
Here’s the one fly in the ointment …. he will be unable to play in the Europa League.
Which suggests that he’s being bought for next season as much as for the current campaign.
It also suggests, as has been mooted elsewhere, that another centre back is being eyed. Two of them. Yes, you read that right. Does that mean someone’s leaving? It almost certainly does; Erik Sviatchenko would be the obvious player to depart, and we’d still be stronger than right now.
We’ve moved fast here. There’s still a fortnight to go before the window opens, and I hear that Brendan wants one more deal primed for the pot by the end of next week. If he can get his key targets over the line before the bell even rings that would be superb work, and the team could go off for their two-week holiday in the sun without any of us getting palpitations over the lack of transfer activity.
It’s smart stuff, exactly the kind of thing we wanted to see.