According to Italian outlet Il Milanista, Celtic have decided not to tie down Diego Laxalt on permanent terms. The AC Milan loanee had a bright start in his usual left-back role, but his form degraded in the later months and the Uruguayan, therefore, is expected to return to Milan having failed to convince the Glasgow giants in 26 appearances across competitions.
The Hoops eyed a historic ‘ten in a row’ last summer but lost the coveted league crown to their bitter rivals Rangers. Neil Lennon stepped down earlier this year following an array of underwhelming outcomes and the club are yet to announce his successor in spite of strong rumours regarding Eddie Howe’s appointment as the next Parkhead chief.
Why Celtic Have Not Made The Move Permanent
The fans had high hopes from Laxalt for his reputation and the 28-year-old was handed a starting role over Greg Taylor down the left-hand side of the Bhoys’ backline. Although he was impressive with his overlapping runs, crosses and attacking contribution, the lack of composure at the back often left them exposed whenever the opponents staged swift counter-attacks. He failed to improve his defensive game and was even taken off at half-time during last month’s Old Firm derby that ended 2-0 in Rangers’ favour.
Laxalt, meanwhile, would either be shipped out once again or retained as the understudy to Theo Hernandez at San Siro amid uncertainties over the future of Diogo Dalot. Manchester United have slapped a fee in the region of £13m for the youngster and Milan, despite deploying him frequently across competitions, have not yet decided whether to meet the Red Devils’ demand for the Portuguese fullback.
Why They Should Still Find A New Name To Replace Laxalt
Greg Taylor, however, remains a more reliable left-back option who got a call-up in Steve Clarke’s Scotland squad for Euro 2020. The former Kilmarnock prodigy has settled in well after a difficult start to life under Lennon and has done a better job than Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo, the forgotten Belgian who failed miserably to succeed Kieran Tierney at Celtic Park. The latter is unlikely to feature again in Celtic colours and the club, thus, must rope in a new name to challenge and cover Taylor from next season onwards.
A shake-up at the back is expected to take place following Shane Duffy’s dismal loan spell from Brighton & Hove Albion. Further, the futures of Kristoffer Ajer and Nir Bitton are up in the air, whereas they are yet to tie down Jonjoe Kenny permanently, who joined on loan from Everton to replace Jeremie Frimpong (snapped up by Bayer Leverkusen late in the winter window).
