Celtic have completed the signing of RB Leipzig defender, Marvin Compper, earlier this week. Compper has joined the Scottish Premiership side on a two-year deal and will be plying his trade with the Celts from the turn of 2018. He was introduced before the Celtic fans during Celtic’s 2-0 win over Partick Thistle and given the mouthful of praise he had for his new club and Brendan Rodgers in an interview, the fans would be keen to see him on the pitch soon.
Stationing men at the central defence has been one of the major headaches for Rodgers this season and due to injuries to their first-team central defenders, he has had to use midfielder, Nir Bitton, at the heart of their defence. Although Bitton produced decent productivity from the aforesaid zone, Celtic definitely needed a predominant centre-back who could shape the backline in a requisite manner and possessed experience of competitive football. Compper certainly fits the bill for the Bhoys.
Having played for Borussia Monchengladbach, Hoffenheim, Fiorentina and RB Leipzig, Compper has mustered truckloads of experience of top division football under his belt and has the quality to thrive in Scottish football as well. He was one of the main reasons which led to the rise of Leipzig to the top division but he has found very limited time on the pitch this season. He is still far from hanging his boots and thus, his move to the Celtic Park makes a lot of sense.
The 32-year-old is a versatile player and has can be used as a left-back as well as a defensive midfielder. He is a cool and composed customer and is rarely seen getting carried away while catering to his duties. He is strong, tall, is good at making shrewd tackles and interceptions and reads the game quite well. Besides, he has certainly proven himself to be a reliable package at the back and apart from a good player, Rodgers is also getting an astute leader at the back.
Celtic are placed at the top of the Premiership table with 44 points to their name after 19 games. Under the tutelage of the former Liverpool manager, the Hoops are once again showing their unmatchable class in the domestic competitions and having signed Compper, Rodgers has certainly injected the steel and resilience that was needed.
It would be interesting to see how he is utilized by Celtic once he officially moves to Glasgow, but at the onset, it seems like a promising prospect.
