The Celtic Boss Is Working Strategically, Not Playing Whack-A-Mole With His Signings.

There was a question on one of the other Celtic sites earlier asking whether or not Ange has decided that the best form of attack is defence. It’s an interesting question, and it comes from the fact that we’re prioritising signings at the back for January.

But at least one of those signings appears to be the result of an internal decision to let Juranovic talk to other clubs in the summer. The other may be a response to how difficult it may prove to be to keep Moritz Jenz, provided the club even wants to try.

Celtic’s transfer strategy is actually more strategic than it’s ever been.

It is a proactive rather than a reactive strategy.

We’re not playing whack-a-mole here and trying to plug holes as they appear. Last January we strengthened the side in a way that acknowledged that key players would be leaving in the summer.

This January, we’re doing the same.

The thing is, the team will be stronger for the work we’re doing both in the here and now and in the future. It is the best way we’ve done business in a long time, and I am astounded that after years of complaining about it that it took the appointment of a guy many of us had never heard of, and who had never managed in the UK, to put this policy in place.

I do think it is interesting that we’re looking at defenders rather than players in other areas of the pitch, but I wonder if this isn’t a reaction to the Champions League as much as anything else. It’s obvious that the club is happy with our attacking options and that they can propel us to the title … but we’ve lost a lot of daft goals recently.

This is a manager who recognises where tweaks have to be made and does it. He is quite brilliant at spotting the areas where we need to tighten up a bit, and moving in that direction.

This is not a guy who is just going to sign players in order to have more warm bodies available … this is a deep thinker and he works both strategically and tactically … it’s the best method I’ve seen a Celtic boss adopt in my lifetime.