Celtic have been on the lookout for a right back for quite some time now. They have been linked with plenty of names in the past year, but they haven’t been able to sign their targets. One such player was Timothy Castagne of Atlanta. The Hoops had reportedly put in an impressive bid of £8.8m in the January transfer window, but that wasn’t enough to lure him.
Last month, reports had emerged that Celtic were still keeping track of the Belgian right back and a summer move was possible. However, with what has transpired in Italy in the past few days, we feel that Castagne is just going to be a dream for Celtic now.
A blow for Celtic
Italian giants AC Milan and Napoli have been linked with him after his impressive performance in the second half of the campaign. Moreover, Atlanta have managed to achieve Champions League football for the first time in their history as they finished third, ahead of the likes of traditional heavyweights like AC Milan, Inter Milan and AS Roma.
With two Italian giants eyeing a move for him and Atlanta being on an upward trajectory, it is time for Celtic to look at other options in the transfer market. Neil Lennon, who is now going to take over at top job permanently will have a lot of rebuilding to do in almost all the areas of the squad and none more so than the right back spot.
Why does Celtic need to sign a right back?
As things stand, Mikael Lustig, Cristian Gamboa and Jeremy Toljan; all three right backs are set to depart from the club in the summer. Therefore there is going to be a huge vacuum, and the club needs to add two right backs in the squad.
Why would Castagne have been an ideal option?
The Belgian international contributed with five goals and five assists in 37 appearances this season and his impressive performance on both halves of the pitch makes him a perfect candidate for the fullback role. Modern-day fullbacks need to be more adventurous and attacking in nature, and Castagne always looks to drive forward. He can carry the ball up the pitch and link up play well.
Defensively too the player has shown that he can stand his ground. Castagne would have been a dream signing for the Hoops as he is still just 23. The Serie A man could have been a long term option for the club. However, now we don’t see the Belgian moving to Scotland after his breakthrough season in the Serie A.
