Ciftci update

Nadir Ciftci has been urged to get in shape by his boss at Pogon Szczecin.

The striker missed out on a last minute loan deal to Motherwell in January but a deal was agreed to send the former Dundee United man to Poland.

After almost two months Ciftci has been in and out of the side with Pogon slipping out of the top half of the table.

Ciftci became a distant third choice striker under Brendan Rodgers as he alternated between Moussa Dembele and Leigh Griffiths with just a couple of substitute appearances to his name before the loan deal.

Pogon boss Kazimierz Moskal said: “Nadir’s problems here are because he hasn’t played football properly for a long time and is lacking match fitness but with each passing week here and the more he plays, it should work in his favour.

“It would have been helpful if he arrives here fully fit and ready to play, but we knew it would take time with him.

“Expectations were high when he arrived, perhaps too high.

“He wants to play and help the team, but for now we have to rebuild his fitness and confidence.

“I believe that Nadir has the skills and will show them in the end,

although I accept it hasn’t looked good so far but I still maintain he can be a bargain.

“He can play as a striker or out wide and he gives us more options.”

Ciftci was a £1.2m signing from Dundee United in the summer of 2015 despite the threat of a domestic suspension hanging over him.

With a contract that runs through until June 2019 it seems unlikely that the club will be able to get anything back on that transfer fee.