Celtic, despite winning a ‘double treble’ under Brendan Rodgers over the past two seasons, are lacking the spark this term both at home as well as abroad. The Hoops have won the Premiership seven times in a row but are expecting a tougher test to defend the silverware this time around.
They made some significant deadline day business at the end of the summer window but failed to resolve a few concerns that led to the underwhelming inception of the 2018-19 campaign. Frailty at the back resulted in defeats versus Hearts and Kilmarnock which imply how they need to strengthen themselves defensively in the upcoming January window.
Samir Memišević, the 25-year-old Bosnian international, was strongly linked with a move to Parkhead a couple of months back following two impressive seasons in Eredivisie with FC Groningen. The 6’1” tall defender made his presence known with a towering display in the heart of the backline and was keen on plying his trade in Glasgow to become a Celtic player. The champions, however, opted to loan in Leicester City centre-back Filip Benkovic. This cooled down the Memišević rumours for the time being.
Celtic, meanwhile, needs to reshuffle the squad a bit in January with multiple incomings whereas a few departures are also on the cards considering their current conundrum in the central defensive line. Dedryck Boyata, the wantaway Belgian, was forced to stay beyond this summer but should be allowed to leave if offers are received next year.
Benkovic, too, does not hold a long-term future in Glasgow and will return to his parent club at the end of this current season. Young Jack Hendry has failed to live up to the expectations yet following a series of erroneous outings whereas the injury nightmare of veteran Marvin Compper has left Rodgers with no choice but to embrace the uncertainty.
Jozo Simunovic has struggled with his form and injury woes but needs to uplift his game for the remainder of the season. Kristoffer Ajer, however, remains the only stable option who holds a bright future at Parkhead but should be having someone who will partner him for years to come.
Memišević is currently undergoing a dreadful run in Dutch football as Groningen are placed second from bottom in league standings and have conceded 15 goals in 8 outings – a statistics that does not justify his merit and eminence at the back. The Hoops must explore the circumstances and tie the Bosnian down to a long-term deal to find solidity in deep defence.
