According to the latest reports from the Sun, Crystal Palace have reignited their interest for Arsenal’s fullback Carl Jenkinson. Celtic were heavily linked with the fullback, but the rumours seemed to die down in the last few weeks. Now with Palace entering the race for him, Celtic are likely to find it harder to sign the English fullback.
Why Celtic need a right-back?
The club lost as many as three right-backs in this window as the likes of Mikael Lustig, Cristian Gamboa and Jeremy Toljan departed as their contracts had expired. Lustig was the mainstay for the Hoops in that position for quite some time, but the Sweden international’s career was on a downward trajectory. Therefore it was understandable why the club let go of him once his contract expired.
However, Celtic’s season has already begun, and they are yet to sign a right back. Kristoffer Ajer played for the Hoops in the recently concluded Champions League qualifier tie against Sarajevo as right back. The club needs to pull up their socks and bring in a new right-back sooner rather than later.
Will Jenkinson be a good option for Celtic?
Reports mention that Jenkinson is available for £5m and that is something which Celtic can definitely pay. However, Jenkinson has been in the wilderness for quite some time now. To be honest, we aren’t really sure whether he would be able to take on new challenges.
The fullback is known for his defensive qualities more than his attacking abilities. That is one of the primary reasons why he failed to make it at Arsenal after bursting onto the scene. Modern-day fullback is a lot about attacking endeavours, and they almost play like a winger. Jenkinson’s style of play is a bit more traditional in that sense as he is not that impressive in the attacking half of the pitch.
The 27-year-old is being valued at £5m, and we think that Celtic can get someone better for that kind of price tag. Given the way Celtic tend to dominate their games, there is no doubt that they would want to have an attacking fullback. Maybe on a free transfer, Jenkinson would have been worth having a punt over.
Most will agree that it is surprising to see Palace wanting to replace Aaron Wan Bissaka with Jenkinson. Roy Hodgson is said to be an admirer of the fullback, and it was he who gave Jenkinson his England debut. We think that Celtic should let Palace have this signing and Lennon needs to move towards other targets.
