5 Celtic stars with uncertain futures after transfer window as hunt for Kyogo 2.0 resolution could be at Parkhead
A look at five Parkhead aces still at the club but don’t look to be part of manager Brendan Rodgers' plans
Celtic parted ways with a number of fringe players and one significant big-money departure in the summer window, but there are still a couple who remain at the club but are struggling for regular minutes.
Despite the lack financial backing shown from the Hoops board, Brendan Rodgers still made 11 new additions to his squad this summer. The Northern Irishman was able to balance out the squad with some notable offloads, including Nicolas Kuhn, Gustaf Lagerbielke and Marco Tilio.
With some notable names left out of Rodgers’ squad for the Europa League, as well as some players not getting first-team action, here’s a look at five Celtic stars whose Parkhead careers still look vulnerable, despite the summer transfer window being over:
Jahmai Simpson-Pusey
What was the point in bringing the Manchester City prospect on loan? Serious eyebrows were raised when the centre-back was omitted from the Europa League squad by Rodgers, given he was named Premier League 2 ‘Player of the Season’ last year. It’s strange that a player with such high potential and brought to Parkhead to play European football seems to be well down the pecking order. It would be no surprise if City were to recall him or terminate the loan agreement at some stage.
Paulo Bernardo
It’s unclear what the future holds for the Portuguese Under-21 international with the summer arrival of Benjamin Nygren seemingly bumping him down the list for a starting berth. Ever since his loan move was made permanent for around £4.5 million last summer, it’s never felt like Bernardo was a guaranteed starter. He was praised for his work ethic and physicality previously by Rodgers, but so far this season the 23-year-old hasn’t had much of a look-in.
Hayato Inamura
Another bizarre piece of transfer business conducted by the Hoops, despite the Japanese full-back showing up well in the games he has been involved in to date. It’s clear Rodgers doesn’t fancy him and almost immediately made him available for loan. He stayed on the books, however, after a Deadline Day exit couldn’t be agreed. Some fans will be pleased to see Inamura stick around, but Rodgers has already made it clear he’s been signed with the future in mind rather than as a first-team regular at this stage.
Yang Hyun-jun
The inconsistent South Korean winger appeared to be on the verge of a £3m permanent transfer to Birmingham City on Deadline Day, only for the move to collapse in the final hours of the window. That will have frustrated the player considering he had intimated his desire to leave Glasgow earlier this summer. Rodgers was reluctant to let Yang leave the club without having a replacement in the door. As it materialised, Celtic signed Sebastian Tounekti for £5.5m, further limiting Yang’s potential game time.
Callum Osmand
Snapped up from Premier League side Fulham, it was clear from the outset that the young striker was never going to solve Celtic’s problems in attack. The 18-year-old has featured more for the B-team than he has Rodgers’ senior squad so far, with his absence fuelling expectation that the club will seek a loan move to aid his development in January,