After a few quiet days, Celtic are back in business with a double swoop for Aaron Mooy and Moritz Jenz. They have already tied down Daizen Maeda, Filipe Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers on permanent terms, also the addition of Benjamin Siegrist and Alexandro Bernabei should offer more depth as well as quality in the defensive third.
Having said that, the Hoops had to bolster themselves in the centre of the pitch following the departure of both Nir Bitton and Tom Rogic. The long-serving pair made enormous contributions down the years, whereas the outcasts Luca Connell, Ewan Henderson and Ismaila Soro were shown the door for not being in the manager’s plan. The Celts, therefore, needed reinforcements in the middle of the park and the signing of Mooy is a shrewd piece of business given his availability on a Bosman.
Ideal Replacement For Rogic
The 31-year-old Australia international could be viewed as Rogic’s successor. His box-to-box movements, creative spark and scoring ability earned him success in England with Huddersfield Town and the veteran playmaker has now reunited with Ange Postecoglou who managed the player during his tenure as the Socceroos boss. It’s a return to Scotland as well after a couple of years with St Mirren early into his career.
The Hoops have ample ‘number 8’ options in their ranks with Reo Hatate, David Turnbull, Matt O’Riley and Yosuke Ideguchi challenging each other for first-team football. However, they lack a cover for skipper Callum McGregor deep down the midfield and the versatility of Mooy could be utilized following James McCarthy’s underwhelming stint.
Meanwhile, Celtic have roped in Jenz from Lorient on a season-long loan with the option to buy at the end of the 2022-23 campaign. They already have Cameron Carter-Vickers and Carl Starfelt as the prime central defensive pairing, yet the inclusion of the 23-year-old German centre-half makes absolute sense due to various reasons.
Why Celtic Made The Right Call By Roping In Jenz
Young academy prodigy Stephen Welsh was handed a sporadic role last season behind Starfelt and Carter-Vickers. Bitton operated as a makeshift centre-back on a few occasions, but his exit has left a void to fill in as the fourth choice in deep defence.
Moreover, Welsh has not done enough to cement a place even though he grabbed opportunities during Christopher Jullien’s injury absence. The latter, on the other hand, was close to leaving Parkhead a couple of weeks back, but a move to Schalke fell through after failing to agree on terms. The future remains uncertain for the Frenchman and the arrival of Jenz might also jeopardize Welsh’s Celtic career.
The 23-year-old defender spent several years with Fulham reserves before leaving for Lausanne-Sport in the summer of 2020. Lorient tied him down a year later for his stellar show for the Swiss side and the ceiling seems quite high for the youngster who helped the French outfit maintain top-flight existence with some headstrong performances in the heart of the backline.
