According to The Mail, Tom Rogic is on the brink of leaving Celtic for Qatar, in a move worth £4 million.
It would not surprise me in the least if that story was true, because I’ve written about Rogic on here numerous times as the player I thought most likely to leave in this window.
Rogic is a fantastic footballer on his day.
But he’s injured a lot. And his frequent sojourns with the Australian national football team take him away for weeks at a time.
And he plays in only one position and isn’t suited to a battling role or a holding role.
When we don’t play with a midfielder tucked in behind the strikers there’s no room for him in the side.
In addition to that, Forrest can play that role.
So can Mikey Johnson.
So can Ntcham.
And so can Ryan Christie and he’s the manager’s first choice and gives us more.
I’ve never thought he had a future under Lennon. He doesn’t fit his style of play.
Lennon likes every player to be a worker, a grafter.
Watch Christie in the same position; he covers every blade of grass on the pitch.
He is the perfect Neil Lennon footballer.
The amazing thing is that Rogic’s leaving opens the door for another player in that position; David Turnbull of Motherwell.
I think you can take it as fact that we’re looking at him again and would be interested in bringing him to the club in this window.
Indeed, don’t be surprised if we have a contract with Motherwell to that end from the last time.
The difference is that Turnbull can play a more central role and is therefore more versatile.
Ironically, he probably has a better fitness profile.
He certainly won’t be globetrotting with the national team. It is a sensible move, replacing Rogic with someone who gives us more options and spends less time on the treatment table.
Selling Rogic will not terribly impress some of our fans, but I have to say that considering how little use we’ve had out of him over the last couple of years it is not only understandable but probably right that both club and player move on from each other.
His choice of destination, well that doesn’t tell us much.
He’ll be closer to home than he is right now, and the money will be out of sight. That we’re not talking about an eight figure sum from some top club in England shows how far he’s fallen from the standards of a few years ago when there was genuine interest from the EPL and elsewhere.
It’s a fair price, and I wish him well in his future.
We all should.
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