The revolving door

After the draw with Sevco, Brendan Rodgers spoke about a revolving door during the January transfer window with as much interest in the players leaving as those arriving. When he took over from Ronny Deila the Irishman had a big task on his hands trimming down a bloated squad that was especially top heavy with midfielders. The loan system has been used to thin down the numbers with Ryan Christie and Scott Allan both elsewhere while being contracted to Celtic until the summer of 2019. As he prepares for his fourth transfer window as Celtic manager the squad is starting to shape up in the managers image with most of the players that he inherited signed onto new contracts. One of the beauties of football is how a team evolves with new faces appearing to replace those that were once thought to be irreplaceable. At least three of last season's regulars could be on the move when the transfer window opens tomorrow, strangely there won't be many fans upset with some of last season's heroes looking a little more disposable this term. STUART ARMSTRONG It has been almost all downhill for Armstrong since he struck the equaliser in the Scottish Cup Final against Aberdeen. Perhaps a misplaced pass against England caused more damage than expected but neither the player or the club handled the contract stalemate very well. When a 12 month extension was agreed it was underwhelming like many of the appearances this season of the former Dundee United midfielder. Rather than go through a repeat of the contract saga a quick departure may suit all parties. MOUSSA DEMBELE There has been quite a change in attitude to the player from supporters after a half season blighted by injury. The French kid appeared to have put his career first when he picked Celtic over EPL options in the summer of 2016 but in recent weeks something seems to have changed. Next month the calibre of clubs and value of a potential transfer are likely to be downgraded from those at the start of 2017. It's certainly not a case of cutting losses but it looks like a new era is starting for Celtic without last season's prolific marksman. LIAM HENDERSON Has already been linked with Bari and Hibs but a move to the English Championship seems a more natural fit for the midfielder. With his contract up in the summer and no real talk of it being renewed he has found himself out of the picture and playing with his brother Ewan in the Development Team. How he may have developed will never be answered, could he have matched Callum McGregor and Stuart Armstrong or was he destined to be another Scott Allan? ERIK SVIATCHENKO A rapid fall from grace, in 2016 he appeared a leader, in 2017 his Celtic career virtually disappeared. The re-emergence of Dedryck Boyata and some agent led transfer talk in January seemed to seal the fate of the Danish defender who was one of Ronny Deila's final signings. Having fallen behind Nir Bitton and Kris Ajer the door has closed on his Celtic career with only the destiny of his next move to be decided. CRISTIAN GAMBOA He deputised regularly for Mikael Lustig last season with the Swede going on to be one of the most influential performers in the treble win. Gamboa was last seen away to Bayern Munich in October with the amount of matches taking it's toll on Lustig. With a World Cup campaign to look forward to and hopefully the return to fitness of Anthony Ralston a quiet departure for Gamboa looks very likely. JOZO SIMUNOVIC No transfer window is complete without speculation over the former Dinamo Zagreb. Usually Celtic fans have been anxious for Simunovic to stay but after a few injuries too many and some dodgy performances interest from Torino or lower order EPL teams would be welcome. It was always going to be a tough act replacing Virgil van Dijk but other than a crunching tackle on Kenny Miller there hasn't been many highlights. Although he signed a new contract earlier this season it seems that was mainly to protect a transfer value than secure a first team starter. EBOUE KOUASSI It really hasn't happened for Kouassi since his January signing. Midfield places at Celtic are at a premium and it's hard to see when he will get a chance to prove his worth. A loan deal to Holland or Belgium may be beneficial, he needs to get significant game time to be pushing for a first team place for next season's European qualifiers.

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