Celtic fans who were hoping to remain happy with the team’s pre-season games will be disappointed with the way the first three games went.
The Hoops were defeated 4-1 by Portuguese giants Sporting on both sides and drew 1-1 with Shelbourne and Middlesbrough, scoring three goals and conceding six in those games.
Fans may want to see more quality added to the squad before the start of the Scottish Premiership season, as the team seems to lack attacking flair in terms of friendlies so far.
In fact, their only summer signing so far, Camilo Duran, has scored two of their three goals in pre-season, showing the kind of impact the new addition can have.
Celtic need to sign another midfielder behind Duran
The 24-year-old, signed from Qarabag for £6m, has shown signs of promise with goals against Sporting and Middlesbrough in his first friendlies.
However, Celtic need to add another player in the middle of the team because they lost Kelechi Iheanacho, who signed from Bursaspor for free, refusing a new contract at Parkhead.
Duran is an exciting young talent, with star potential, but he has yet to prove in his career that he can consistently deliver in the final third at the league level.
|
Camilo Duran |
24/25 Liga Portugal 2 |
25/26 Premier Liqa |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearance |
26 |
30 |
|
Goals |
5 |
9 |
|
Minutes per goal |
304 |
233 |
|
Conversion rate |
11% |
12% |
|
It helps |
1 |
5 |
|
Duel success rate |
46% |
43% |
In two seasons of regular first-team football, the Colombian striker has scored just 14 goals in 56 games, a respectable, but not outstanding, record.
His form in Qarabag and Portimonense shows that there is no guarantee that he will score goals regularly for Celtic in the Premiership, which is why they have yet to bring in a proven goalscorer who is relied on week after week.
Promoter Duran wants to sign for Celtic this summer
With this in mind, the board should take advantage of the latest report which suggests the proven striker is keen on a move to Parkhead ahead of next season.
The Daily Record reports that Kyogo Furuhashi is set to return to Celtic for a second spell in Glasgow before the end of the summer transfer window.
Birmingham’s manager, Chris Davies, has told the Japanese player that he is not part of his plans for next season, which has opened the door for him to leave the club in the coming weeks.
The report claims that Kyogo wants to return to the Hoops, but the Scottish giants will have to agree a deal with Birmingham, after failing to do so in the January window.
Celtic must now enter into talks with the Blues to agree a deal, be it loan or legal, to bring the Japanese striker back to Parkhead to strengthen Martin O’Neill’s side.
Kyogo, who signed for Birmingham from Rennes for £10m last year, scored just three goals for Davies last season, but is a proven goalscorer in Scottish football who could hit the mark in Glasgow.
|
Kyogo’s goalscoring record for Celtic |
||
|---|---|---|
|
The season |
Games |
Goals |
|
24/25 |
32 |
12 |
|
23/24 |
50 |
19 |
|
22/23 |
50 |
34 |
|
21/22 |
33 |
20 |
The experienced striker scored at least 19 goals in each of his three full seasons with the club, before signing for Rennes for £10m during the 2024/25 campaign.
Kyogo has scored twice in the Premiership in all his seasons at Parkhead, including the one he left, while Duran has never scored twice in a league season in his career.
The Japanese international, who scored 34 goals in one campaign for the Hoops, ranks higher than Duran at this point, thanks to what he has achieved in a Celtic shirt.
Kyogo is expected to score ten or more goals comfortably in the Premiership, given his previous record at the club, while Duran’s career at the club so far does not mean he is guaranteed success in front of goal.
Therefore, signing the Japanese star would be the best step to follow the signing of Duran, because O’Neill will have a proven and experienced number nine to complement the young and promising student.
