Yesterday I wrote about how Lennon said our transfer business for the winter window is already underway.
I speculated in the piece that the positions we need to cover are centre back, goalkeeper and central midfield.
In particular, a player in the defensive midfield mould who could fill in for Brown in the long term.
I still think those are the likely areas.
But a lot of Celtic fans have suggested that perhaps the forward line positon remains one where Lennon would like to sign another player, and yesterday the hacks threw a name into the hat; it’s one that we were linked with in the summer. Lawrence Shankland.
Shankland has had an interesting career.
The biggest club he’s played for so far is Aberdeen, but he scored not one single goal for the Pittodrie club. It’s when he’s played lower league football that he’s shown that he knows how to put the ball in the back of the net. Normally this doesn’t impress me too much, especially when the lower league is here in Scotland, but his stats are … impressive.
In League One, for Ayr United, he seemed to find his rhythm. He scored 29 times in 34 games for them in 2017-18. He helped them win promotion to the second tier. He was even more impressive last season, when in the Championship he scored 34 goals in 41 games.
His exploits this season have seen him score 15 in 12 games for Dundee United. They are on a very decent run and look, finally, like a club on their way back to the SPL. Having a proven goal-scorer in the team makes all the difference.
The papers are saying there’s interest from Ibrox; some gibbering loons think their club would have the advantage in getting him, although this isn’t explained.
It is hard to imagine Dundee Utd selling him for a price the cash-strapped club over there could afford.
There’s no love lost between the two teams anyway.
Celtic would at least be able to match what United wanted … but why?
We could have signed him at the start of the season, before they did.
If we’re suddenly interested now it would be somewhat unusual, and expensive in comparison with what we could have paid for him when he was still at Ayr. If he helps United tor promotion he’s an SPL striker and the cost would run into the millions. Is he at the level required for us?
Shankland is still only 24. That’s in his favour anyway. You’d be getting a player close to his prime, and he does have that amazing scoring record; he has more than 100 goals already. That’s impressive no matter where a player is scoring them.
He could be a Derek Riordan, this guy, someone incapable of making that step up.
Equally, he could be a Leigh Griffiths, no matter what his failings at Pittodrie.
We have to remember that he left there when he was still very young … and he’s clearly improved.
So what do people think?
Is this guy worth a punt or not?
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