Ange Postecoglou warns Celtic fans to expect fewer signings next season as he outlines transfer policy

Ange Postecoglou has warned Celtic fans they shouldn’t expect to see the same number of signings this summer as they did last season.

The Hoops manager brought in 19 new players over the past year (including B team additions); 14 in the summer and five in January.

The vast majority of those have been first-team regulars during the Parkhead club’s title-winning campaign, but Postecoglou insists their recruitment policy will be more streamlined this summer.

The Australian’s forward-thinking transfer strategy is centred around the club’s future and staying ahead of the chasing pack.

He revealed the departures of long-term servants Tom Rogic and Nir Bitton had been in the pipeline for a while, leading to the January arrivals of midfield trio Matt O’Riley, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi.

Postecoglou is targeting another midfielder in the upcoming transfer window as he looks to strengthen his newly-crowned champions.

The 56-year-old said: “People will eventually figure out that I’m always trying to think a step ahead.

“The reason we brought in three midfielders in January was because I knew the likely outcome at the end of the season.

“We wanted to be a step ahead in planning for (Bitton and Rogic leaving) so we’re not scrambling at the last minute.

“It’s about the future and that’s an area of the park we had to bolster. We still need to sign another midfielder but having signed the boys in January, it means they’re already bedded into our club. It gives us a head start.

“What we’ll look to do in the summer window is make sure the squad are stronger, more robust and increase the quality of our starting players.

“We won’t bring in as many, obviously it’ll be more targeted.”

Meanwhile, thousands of Celtic supporters flooded the streets of Glasgow City Centre on Saturday as they celebrated their Scottish Premiership title success.

Largs crowds gathered in George Square and the Merchant City, waving flags, joining in chants and setting off flares and smoke bombs.

A sea of green and white basked in their club’s top-flight triumph in the surrounding streets as fans climbed on top of bus stops and traffic lights.

Police kept a watchful eye on the celebrations from ground-level and the air as a helicopter circled overhead.