John Hartson has urged Celtic to loosen the purse strings to bring in two quality defenders.
Since the summer transfer window supporters have been looking for a right-back and central defenders but so far that area of the pitch hasn’t been touched.
Celtic’s business model concentrating on young emerging talent is well established and generally successful but now and then breaking the mould brings rewards.
This season’s turnover will be missing a £30m cheque from UEFA for the Champions League with a number of hurdles required to reach next season’s group stage. Securing the SPFL title is far from guaranteed with a new look defence required for four rounds of Champions League qualifiers.
“I still think there is time to get in another centre-half and a right-back,” Hartson told the Evening Times. “And while we all applaud the model and the success it has brought Celtic in terms of financially staying on an even keel, there is an argument to say that you can push the boat out in isolated cases for a player who might not necessarily be in the age group where you are going to see a return on your money.
“While the hope with Bayo will be that he follows in the footsteps of Moussa Dembele and Victor Wanyama in that he makes an impression, does well and can potentially move on for a decent fee.
“I do think there is a case to make that not all signings have to fit into that mould. I don’t like to hark back to my own time because I understand how much the game has changed in that time and the financial gap is significantly wider than it ever was but at the same if you look at myself, Chris Sutton and Neil Lennon who were brought in by Martin O’Neill, we were never going to be sold for the same money that we came in for. But you can see what we all brought to the table.
“That isn’t to criticise the current model in any way. It has worked perfectly for Celtic and ensures that the club are financially successful but every now and again I think there is a case to say that you can spent a bit of money on a player whose return won’t be in a resale but rather simply on where they can take you on the park.
“And with Celtic still looking at a solid central defender and a right-back then there might be an argument to say that is where you need to spend it. And if it gets you back into the Champions League again next summer and through the qualifiers then you’ve made your money back. There is also the fact that Celtic are very much in a title race.”
Scott McKenna of Aberdeen has been linked with a move to Celtic with Timothy Castagne of Atalanta also in the frame.
At the same time Mikael Lustig and Cristian Gamboa are out of contract in June while Jack Hendry and Marvin Compper are expected to move on.