Yesterday, I said we had missed a trick by not completing a signing ahead of this Champions League game—someone we could unveil on the pitch before kick-off to give the crowd an early lift. But it turns out we have completed a deal, and it’s a very significant one: we’ve tied Kasper Schmeichel to another year, and that’s a hugely positive step.
We signed a lot of quality players in the summer and made real improvements to the squad. Many of those players came at a considerable cost. What’s incredible, though, is that one of the best signings has turned out to be Schmeichel—a player we brought in for free. At the time, I couldn’t understand the criticism from some quarters about this deal. To me, it was a no-brainer.
Schmeichel was still playing at the top of his game, and it was an obvious step forward to replace a major dressing room figure like Joe Hart with another player of that calibre.
Every club wants as many leaders in the dressing room as possible.
Losing a big personality like Hart meant we needed someone else who could fill that void, and Schmeichel has done exactly that. Of course, having experience and character alone isn’t enough—you also need ability—and Kasper has shown he’s still an outstanding goalkeeper.
He’s not someone you want to lose, and with his contract running out at the end of the season, there’s no doubt plenty of clubs would’ve been keen to snap him up. So, extending his deal is excellent business for us.
There is one minor downside to this, and it will give fuel to the small group of fans who claim we’re not developing enough young talent. I’ll delve into this more in a longer piece tomorrow or later this week, but I find that accusation to be absolute nonsense.
Have people not noticed players like Idah, who is only 22, or Bernardo at 23? Or that we’ve got a top winger in Nicholas Kuhn, who’s just 24? And let’s not forget our youngest player is also the most expensive signing the club has ever made.
Yes, the average age of the squad is 27, but that’s skewed by older players like Schmeichel, Callum McGregor, and James Forrest. What’s the real concern here—that we won’t be able to sell some of these players for massive profits? Is this football or a hedge fund?
That said, the criticism that extending Schmeichel’s deal might block opportunities for a younger goalkeeper is fair to an extent. But I suspect we’ll see that kid get game time before the season ends. Schmeichel’s deal provides continuity and security in the goalkeeping department, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we start transitioning to the younger option during the next campaign.
This deal is nothing but good news for Celtic. Schmeichel has been an outstanding addition to the squad and is a real asset to the club. Maybe not in the sense of resale value, but there’s more to value than transfer fees. The experience, leadership, and quality he brings are priceless. He’s been worth every penny we’ve paid him so far and will be worth every penny we pay in the future.
Schmeichel also understands and loves this club already, and you can never have too many players like that in your team. We’re very fortunate to have so many of them at Celtic Park right now. Long may that continue.
Photo by Joe Prior/Visionhaus via Getty Images
The latest Trinity Tims podcast is out now! We called this one The Bumps In The Road.
Please watch, like and share widely friends!
Great news, no complaints from me.
Now let’s get Tierney and Jota.
That you **Leod?
Great news indeed !
Sign officials now that won’t disallowed THREE goals in half an hour !
The decisions to disallow all 3 goals were correct, one a foul by Calmac in the build up and the other two offside – if there are officials who wouldn’t have chopped all 3 off then those are exactly the type of officials we want nowhere near the game.
Indeed I do agree 100% warsamatabooboo…
Ma comment was just light hearted to try and distract me from a tense and dramatic evening which thankfully worked out ok…
Definitely true – All we want is fairness not bloody favours for sure !