If reports last night are true, then we’re going to lose another player this summer for a decent transfer fee. The player in question is Gustaf Lagerbielke, who is apparently wanted by a number of clubs across Europe after what is being described as an excellent loan spell in Holland, including strong performances in the Europa League.
In fact, those early performances were so good that a certain Scottish sports writer speculated that Brendan Rodgers—an elite-level coach—had signed a bad player in Auston Trusty and let go of a good one.
He even suggested Rodgers should be under pressure for that decision. But that particular sports writer has made a career out of trying to find little holes he can poke at and prod, trying to turn them into negative stories about us. No one watching Trusty right now could possibly think Rodgers made a mistake there.
Trusty is still very much in his settling-in period, but he’s clearly a quality player.
Gustaf, I think, is also a pretty good player, but he doesn’t fit the Brendan style. He doesn’t play out from the back, and he doesn’t have the pace to push further up the pitch if that’s what Rodgers wants during a game. There are a lot of reasons why Trusty is here and not Lagerbielke. But none of us wish the lad anything but the best in whatever he does next—his future just isn’t going to be at Celtic Park.
So, we’re likely to get a nice fee for him, and that’s important for a number of reasons. But the primary one is this: If we sell him, if we get a fee for Nawrocki, and if we also manage to move on Luis Palma, then any need to sell a key player in the summer is completely eradicated.
I’ve maintained this point repeatedly, and I’ll maintain it again today, especially in light of yesterday’s reports about scouts watching Nicolas Kühn. We cannot stop those stories, nor can we change the scenario if Kühn himself wants to move—that’s what some of these reports are designed to push, of course. In fact, we should immediately recommence talks with him about renewing his contract and securing him on a longer deal. But if he’s determined to go, we won’t keep him.
But the nagging suspicion remains that this club is so committed to turning a profit every single season, no matter what impact that has on the team, that we won’t spend proper money unless we bring in a major deal.
Or a number of small ones which amounts to the same thing.
Look, I know a lot of people have managed to convince themselves that the club had intended to spend big in January but just couldn’t get deals done. Lawwell and this board have been making those same excuses for more than ten years. I can show you the quotes that prove it. They also make big promises of signings in the summer; those signings very rarely materialise without a major transfer sale to fund them.
Prepare yourselves for it. It’s a fact of life with these people in charge. Do not kid yourself about Rodgers being backed; I’ve already proved that the suggestion that he has been is wholly false. Everything has been funded by selling people first.
Note that word; first.
Had Matt O’Riley not left this club when he did do you believe there’d have been an Idah, an Engels or a Trusty? We have no reason to believe that any significant business this summer will be done unless sufficient funds are brought in from sales. This board won’t back Rodgers with a penny from the general fund.
It’s fanciful to believe otherwise. They won’t back any manager that way.
The fortunate thing is that Kühn doesn’t seem to want to go. He seems committed to the club, he seems like he’s enjoying life here under Rodgers, and as we can almost certainly offer him Champions League football next season—”almost certainly” because I’m confident we’ll go through—he can fulfil many of his football ambitions at Celtic Park. The rest of it comes down to money, and if we make him feel wanted and valued, that becomes less of an issue.
Of course, players may be saying something different behind the scenes. That’s up to Rodgers to try and sell them on his vision. He’s proved to be good at it. But there’s always the fear that this board will cut the legs from under him.
I know there are people on the Celtic board who will be looking to make a major player sale before we spend proper money, just to balance the books, just to ensure another year of profit. Nothing frightens these people more than having to spend. And we already know there’s one key position—the striker position—where we’re going to need to do exactly that, and maybe in a big way.
I don’t expect them to do it with smiles on their faces, and nor does Rodgers. But we all expect them to do it, because they pretty much have to.
That’s why the Lagerbielke story is potentially significant. Depending on the fee we get for him and the other sales, the need for a major departure before the manager can spend could be greatly reduced.
That’s not to say that if a £30 million bid for Kühn came in, we’d turn it down—I know this board would bite a club’s hand off for that. But the scandalous truth is that without a number of sales which add up to big money, his spending power will be limited by the people at our club who value the balance sheet above all else.
As I’ve said before, the next transfer window should, in theory, be relatively straightforward—but that was something I also thought about the January window before it went spectacularly wrong.
So, you never know with the Celtic board. And you never know what’s going to happen next. I wouldn’t be surprised if we go into the Champions League qualifiers two or three players down; I would be surprised if Rodgers doesn’t explicitly spell out his intention to leave at the end of the season if we do.
But if we can sell a couple of fringe players for the right kind of money, that risk becomes smaller, and the manager will have more to spend.
I see a lot of sites indulging in mad speculation that clubs will want Daizen Maeda or Kühn. I have little doubt interest in them is real. But my hope is that if we sell the right players—the fringe players—and we get decent fees, then the board’s perceived need to sell a key player won’t be as strong and we would resist those overtures.
And it’s terrible that we’re even thinking in these terms, trying to compromise with these people, when there are tens of millions sitting in the bank, and we’re paying seven- or low-eight-figure sums to the taxman instead of putting it on the pitch.
This is what this board does to you.
It puts you in a position where you’re thinking about things like this. I don’t like it, but I recognise reality. We’re going to have to sell players if we want to bring players in. This board will not allow us to do it any other way. And if we get the minor sales right, then the big one might not be necessary.
Which isn’t to say they won’t do it anyway.
Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
Why do we even have to sell with so much money in the bank? Why are you conditioning us for such a scenario? Why are you not outraged at such that scenario?
James ,why is it every season this board has to balance the books, even when we balance the books with player sales we must still be making money,how much is the bank now doing nothing 80 to 100 million?why don’t they just dip into that a little if the balance doesn’t add up,skim 10 to 15 million of it to buy players, another thing is Brendan seems happy with this seller before we buy is this board dragging its heels not the reason he left the last time,I just don’t get his stance on this ,and you state we should offer Kuhn and extended contract on better money,what difference does that make ,if he wants to go he’ll just tear up his contract ,and even if he’s happy here and someone puts in a high bid this board will tear up his contract and sell him whether he likes it or not.the sad thing is nothing will ever change unless we can oust this board which looks impossible.
Oh James is most outraged for sure @3Fitzy for sure…
He’s been banging the drum loud enough about the hoarding now on The Celtic Blog for a good long time exposing it all for our benefit…
I often think that ma late uncle is guiding the board from above as he was like that – but good to himself…
Ma late daddy was the pure opposite – very generous in the pub, up in it seven days a week 3pm till 8pm were his hours, he enjoyed himself but took it all with him, which is what I’m gonna do as well…
No point in being the richest man in the graveyard which ma uncle is !
Fitzy I don’t think you’ve been on this site much, James has been beating the drum about the board hoarding money for a long time. He’s just stating here what we all know from past evidence, this board don’t buy without selling first.
Hopefully in some transfer window they’ll surprise us. In the summer they had better tool up early, as 10 of millions are at stake in the qualifier.
Hearin from one Celtic fan that we ARE seeded for the qualifier…
And hearing from another Celtic fan that we are NOT seeded for it…
Either way it’s gonna be nerve ending as fuck and needs the money spent early !
Everybody lets celabrade today liquidation day or as it’s known everywhere as deid hun day. HAiL! HAIL!.
I can see Kuhn going. Not because he’ll want to but in the same vein as KT/Jota. Money will be too good for the club to refuse & as is the reality of our club we are a stepping stone to get into the Prem & this is unlikely to change.
Can’t begrudge players that, even if the Saudi league is making the prem pay chump change it is still double or more what our top earners make.
I do wonder if it’s more likely to be next January or Summer 2026 that people come in properly for Kuhn. It always feels like we get 2 seasons out of these star players & then it’s a battle to keep them.
1 season could be a fluke, repeat it & you are showing the clear talent
Big difference of opinion here james, the gaffer missed a trick here with gustav, there is a world class player in there and am surprised the gaffer did not perservere the lad has shown hands down he can adjust.
Some great players for whatever reason just cannot cut it at Celtic eldraco…
Shane Duffy being the first one that jumps out at me regarding that !
This is the reason every transfer window moves at a glacial pace. As fans, we go into the transfer window expecting early purchases, however as a club we are left scrambling because we won’t sign anyone until we get players out the door and the guarantee of cash coming in. The O’Riley sale was the perfect example of this. Everyone, including yourself James, were rubbing their hands in anticipation of that being a great window because of the cash ‘surplus’ we had, and the statement from Lawwell basically saying they’d fekd up n should be spending cash instead of hoarding it. Yet again not a penny was spent until O’Riley was out the door and it left us buying players at inflated prices on the last day of the window. They’ll do it again in the Summer window. We have a CL qualifier, but that won’t even be a consideration for this board. They’ll be satisfied if they get a couple of signings in on the last day of the window and turn another trading profit, and to hang with pre-season training for the new guys n giving them time for getting used to their team mates, thats not even a consideration for the board.
As a well run club yes Celtic always balance the books.During the winter transfer break we made a surplus of about £8m in sales and wage savings and in the summer we should make about another £10m in current loan player sales.
Hopefully this will be added to the transfer fund.
I think the key point for Nicolas Khun will be if or when he breaks into the German National squad or even gets his first cap. That seemed to be the catalyst with MOR, getting his first cap for Denmark.
Maybe you should try telling Rodgers he has not been backed, he is on record as saying that he has been.
James, Good continuation of a drum you’ve been beating on this subject, for some time!
Similarly, I’ve commented on this subject several times, and principally, the point of strengthening at times like these.
We all know the player trading model in operation at our club, and appreciate the league, wages on offer and how it may discourage certain players from joining us.
We are also fully aware of our board’s parsimonious approach, despite being cash rich and the wealthiest in our history.
That they believe, and operate, in a manner that waits on one of our star players being sold, before they’ll release requisite funds on replacement(s), tells you all you need to know about their ambitions for Europe, and/or backing for an elite manager!!
As you rightly said, without MOR’s transfer money, there would be NO Engels or Idah. Standard practice for this board.
The January window was another example of their reluctance to open the coffers for Kyogo’s replacement.
At the very minimum, a quality 6 month loanee deal should have been completed, to give our manager the requisite cover, that he had just lost.
Like yourself, and undoubtedly many others, I don’t see our board’s approach changing in the summer.
If our top players are happy, then there should be NO need to sell.
Get the quality in promptly to upgrade our squad and give everyone the requisite boost to negotiate, what will be, tricky and nervy CL qualifiers .
We all want continued success for our beloved club and greatly appreciate what we’ve witnessed. That is never taken for granted.
However, we also want a continuance of the progress that we’ve seen in Europe this season, and not just settling for being there!
The only way to do that is for our board to listen to the guy that matters most …our manager and every person that he trusts in his footballing operation, that will take us forward !
Our financial figures make impressive reading, and so they should. Nevertheless, Celtic fans want to see, and continue to see, impressive figures ON the park, at all times.
We have money to spend, so do not waste these opportunities! HH
Several points come to mind;
Firstly I thought the line up BR came up with the other night was spot on for that particular game and while not setting the heather alight I think we should remember we were up against football royalty in Bayern. Maybe BR should release the bhoys a bit more in the away game.
Like it or not we’re in the SPL and an SPL club, I can’t see that changing so there’s a realism that players with ambition can’t escape from seeing either. Perhaps a higher wage structure coupled with CL regularly might persuade some to stay longer.
Brendan seems to be content with the model and he couldn’t persuade/keep Kyogo at the club in spite of telling us he was happy here. Not that I’m not too bothered as it’s clear Maeda’s stepped in and is the better in form forward of the two as the Japanese manager clearly believes too. BR seems to know that now and we can always bring in other wingers of quality. Flexibility is key though as we’ll find when KT comes home I hope.
Not sure Trusty is the answer with Scales as backup and maybe another look at Lagerbielke is as a developing talent is worthy of further consideration before rushing to a sale. He’s got be an upgrade on the ever injured Welsh.
Schlupp and possibly Scales adds flexibility at LB if KT is injured or required more centrally at times. I’ve now accepted Taylor is going so move on positively.
We need a better central defender as importantly as a striker with the options we have up front currently. Maeda is the jewel in the crown and we need to hang on to him and Khun ideally if he wants to stay.
Closing the gap between us and other club’s wage structure should be a strong consideration.
Finally I agree the board will always look to balance or increase incoming revenue so if BR can persuade them that regular CL participation is preferable to player sales well all’s good.
I’m not gonna join the love in about BR being elite or world class but he is a fine manager and maybe with continued support he could develop into that category.
Lots of if and maybes but we are progressing and that needs to continue but there’s more than the one way the board sees that can enable that to happen.
If O’Riley wanted to stay l/t we wouldn’t have purchased or needed Engels. Another one that wanted a move.
Oh aye complete Paradise so we have an elite stadium for elites and the best fanbase in the world. Hail Hail
As long as Celtic are playing in the SPL we will never attract top class players to the club. Talented players with high ambitions will never be attracted to our very ordinary league no matter how much money we throw at them, and sensibly we will not do that anyway. We will manage to get the occasional nugget, but the elite teams can attract them on a regular basis. We cannot compete with that, I’m not saying we should not try, but we should at least be realistic about our chances of getting to the top table and regrettably accept being satisfied with the crumbs.
Base point in all of this — what kind of club are we?
Buying club — net investment in the team on a regular basis?
Trading club — what goes out needs to come back in?
Selling club — we spend less than we bring in?
Finances are close top absurd — 150mill club.
Was in Euros soon to be in GBP..
£8mill spend of facilities and more than 25% of CL group stage money still to drop and we are only £3mill cash down — looking like we will do a lot of buying in June to stop us topping £100mill in cash.
Just what are we going to do with the cash?
Is PL trying to save his way around DD’s veto on any G40 property development.
The failure of the hotel / museum plan must have hurt an ex property guy with an ego the size of Jupiter.
I liked Lagerbielke, I’m sure he’ll do well wherever he goes. This board just want to make more money than the previous year, even if the previous year was extraordinary, that’s why I hope it’s just one of Kuhn or Maeda that gets sold and not both.