Reports suggest that Celtic are interested in Jon Flanagan now that he’s been released by Liverpool.
Other reports suggest that we should be. Some think Sevco will make him an offer. They are welcome to. I doubt he is anywhere near being on our radar and he shouldn’t be, for many reasons, some of them professional and some of them personal.
Let’s start with the professional. He was on loan last season, and although some reports have said he helped keep Bolton in the league he did it, if indeed you credit him with that, playing only a handful of games. Like eight, if I’m reading correctly. It was a similar story when he was at Burnley.
Partly as a consequence of an injury lay-off that put him out of the game for 20 months, the guy has barely kicked a ball in two years.
He did kick his girlfriend though, in December last year, whilst she was lying on the deck in Liverpool City Centre. Where he had put her. Liverpool’s statement after his trial makes it pretty clear how they felt about the situation;
“It leaves his own reputation damaged and, through association, he has severely let down the club he had previously represented with distinction … (we have) expressed to him our disappointment and anger that he has failed to live up to its values and the internal process of deciding on or implementing any internal disciplinary action will now begin …”
Just a few months on, they’ve let him go on a free. I am guessing they are still pretty cheesed off.
We need cover at left back, and we need a right back to boot.
Ideally, we should be looking for someone who can play in both positions and Jon Flanagan ticks that particular box. But he doesn’t meet the standards we expect and hope for in someone wearing our famous shirt. His lack of playing time, alone, is a disqualifier.
It’s not the only one.
Emre Can on the other hand … expensive maybe, but a lot more worthwhile!