According to the latest reports from Daily Record, Neil Lennon has hinted that a new contract could be in the offing for versatile winger Jonny Hayes. The 32-year-old has primarily been used as a fullback or a wing-back in the past few seasons.
Hayes showed his worth recently in the games against Lazio and Motherwell. With Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo out with injury, Hayes got his chances to shine, and he hasn’t done his chances any harm. Especially in the European encounter, he needs to be applauded for his performance as he was being seen as a weak link in the lineup before the match started.
Hayes on his future
The 32-year-old also found the back of the net against Rangers earlier in the season, and his stocks have seemingly risen in the last few months. Hayes had admitted that he would be open to signing a new deal with the Hoops.
The versatile winger had said (Evening Times), ”Yeah (on whether he will want to stay at Celtic) but it’s not something that’s been spoken about. I haven’t given it a moment’s thought, to be honest. I’ve always been the kind of guy that takes life and football day by day, and I’ll continue to do that.”
Arguments for giving Hayes a new deal
His versatility and work rate are his most significant assets. Moreover, he has never moaned about not being in the playing eleven regularly or sometimes even in the matchday squad. He is an experienced candidate, and in a long season where Celtic are fighting on all the fronts, a team needs a squad player like Hayes who can fill in from time to time.
Arguments against
Celtic have two impressive left-sided fullbacks in Bolingoli and Greg Taylor. Taylor hasn’t gotten many chances as of now, but once he settles in, he could be a decent alternative for the Bhoys. Moreover, Hayes is already 32, and Celtic doesn’t exactly need to keep him for another year or two as they have two outright left-sided fullbacks. Hayes is unlikely to play as a winger anymore, so there is a good argument that the Hoops should part ways with him in the summer.
Verdict
We think that Celtic have enough firepower and capability to cope without Hayes and losing him for free next summer wouldn’t be too big a blow even though Hayes has done well so far in limited chances. Taylor seems to be an exciting talent and Lennon can rely on him to start as a left fullback along with Bolingoli. Therefore, Lennon shouldn’t hand Hayes a new deal, in our opinion.
