Celtic deliver transfer update over Danish international with latest bid being 'prepared' as star nears Parkhead exit
A Celtic transfer update has emerged after the first Old Firm derby of the season
Celtic are bracing for “a big 24 hours” in the transfer market, with manager Brendan Rodgers conceding there are a “number of areas” in his squad that needs freshened up.
The Hoops played out a drab stalemate with Rangers in the first Old Firm of the Premiership season at Ibrox, as time ticks down on the summer transfer window. Deadline day kicks off on Monday and ahead of that, Rodgers has answered questions on the club’s transfer activity.
There have been strong rumours that a third bid is being prepared for Danish international Kasper Dolberg, who plays as a striker for Belgian Pro League giants Anderlecht. Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Rodgers reiterated his desire to add more quality, speed and creativity in attacking areas.
Kasper Dolberg to Celtic transfer latest
Asked how busy he expects to be on Deadline Day, Rodgers said: “It’s clearly the plan to be. We want to pad out the squad with more quality, more speed, more creativity and we hope we can do that.”
Quizzed specifically on interest in Dolberg, the Irishman responded: “I don’t know (if that’s getting closer). I’ll speak to the guys afterwards to find out where we’re at, but I think there’s a number of areas that we need to freshen up. As I said, I’m hopeful we can do that.”
It was also confirmed by Rodgers that Adam Idah has likely played his last game. The striker was left out of the matchday squad as he finalises a move to EFL Championship side Swansea City, who have agreed an initial £6 million fee, plus more than £1m in add-ons.
“I would think so,” Rodgers replied when asked if he expects the transfer to be pushed over the line by Monday night’s deadline. “I’ll get an update after this, so yeah, I can’t answer any more on that.”
Rodgers hopeful squad will be in better place after international break
Finally, the Parkhead boss issued a confidence stance that his squad will be in a stronger frame of mind once the transfer window has closed and the upcoming international break has reached it’s conclusion.
“Yeah, it’s natural,” he commented. “We’ve got players here, some have been here for a long time. Great guys who have been working well, but any player, coach or manager will tell you that that feeling of going into a game knowing you’re going to score goals and have that creativity is great for you’re own team. It puts fear into the opposition.
“What we’ve shown over the course of the early part of the season is that side of our game needs to improve. I’m pretty sure it will do. There’s a big 24 hours ahead for us as a club and if we can do that then we can push on after the international break.”
On the match, Rodgers added: “I didn’t think it was a good game at all. Positive for us, we’ve defended well in the main at the start of the season, been very resolute. We didn’t have any shots on goal against us. But our offensive game is nowhere near the level I’d like it to be at. It was a game that lacked quality.
“We’ve lost players that connected the game for us. When you go through a spell of games you’re not scoring, it can affect the other guys and they don’t quite make the forward pass and they make the safe pass. That creativity has come out the team and we need to find those connections again. I’m very confident we will improve - we have to. That’s not the Celtic way of playing.”