Scottish football might have lost his essence in recent years, but Celtic’s sheer dominance still continues in the top tier even after Rangers’ return to the Premiership football following four darkest years in club’s glorious history. The Hoops, under Brendan Rodgers, achieved an incredible domestic treble remaining ‘invincibles’ and despite losing out their domestic unbeaten status this term, the Parkhead club are once again close to script a similar stuff in terms of silverware.
Rodgers, the former Liverpool and Swansea City gaffer, has formed a side that is quite the amalgamation of youth and experience as he not only banked on the veterans like Craig Gordon, Mikael Lustig, and Scott Brown but also relied on the rookies like Kristoffer Ajer, Kieran Tierney, Olivier Ntcham, Odsonne Edouard and most notably Moussa Dembele.
Dembele, the France U21 international, was a massive signing during the inception of the previous campaign as the Scottish heavyweights managed to tie him down for a £500,000 fee from English second-tier outfit Fulham amidst interest from several top European outfits. The promising striking sensation was not wrong to choose Celtic as his next destination and nurtured himself under Brendan Rodgers, the Northern Irishman who holds the reputation of grooming young talents and provides them opportunities to shine at a senior level.
The French forward is having a similar story at Celtic Park with 47 goals in 85 outings so far for the reigning champions. He was reportedly close to joining Premier League new boys Brighton & Hove Albion in winter but the move broke down and there are several other admirers now who are keen on the youngster including La Liga outfit Villarreal.
The Yellow Submarine are pretty much in contention of securing a Europa League spot and have identified Dembele as one of their topmost transfer targets. They have recently received more than £35 mil by selling Cedric Bakambu to Chinese Premier League side Beijing Guoan and manager Javier Calleja is now plotting a £15 mil bid for the Frenchman. Villarreal are lacking enough quality in the attacking third and Carlos Bacca, on loan from AC Milan, has been the only prolific name in front of goal.
They need someone to solve the striker conundrum and the Celtic star’s record against the European heavyweights has drawn the further attention of the Spanish side. Although the Hoops have been dismal in Champions League, Dembele has notched goals against the likes of Paris St-Germain, Borussia Monchengladbach, and Manchester City. He is lauded for his goal-poaching instinct and maturity in front of goal.
Celtic are expecting several departures in summer and Rodgers is already shortlisting his options to reconstruct the lineup. Football in Scotland is exciting, but the players from abroad do not usually fancy themselves at Premiership for long. Dembele is highly-rated in Europe and the Hoops won’t be able to tie him down for long due to the recent downfall of Scottish football in European competitions.
But the gaffer is concentrating on a slow yet steady progress from grassroots and should allow the French forward completing his inevitable switch for a decent transfer fee. Rodgers, therefore, must spend the amount wisely on other transfer options and continue his majestic managerial work at Celtic Park.
