John Hartson feels that Mikael Lustig is worth a new contract at Celtic- but only as a back up right-back.
The defender is out of contract at the end of the season with Celtic not exercising the 12 month option that they have on his current terms.
Neil Lennon’s return to the club has resulted in Lustig being restored to the side at right-back but he has been a vastly different player to the one that excellent during the Invincible season.
A number of big decisions need to be made before Celtic kick off next season’s competitive action on July 9/10 with Hartson believing that those circumstances point towards Lustig getting another deal.
He told the Evening Times:
To my mind, Celtic need bodies through the door this summer, and it is clear that at 32, Lustig is not the long-term solution in his position. I would like to see a younger, first-choice right-back brought in, but I do wonder if Celtic may see the value in keeping Lustig around.
He has huge experience, having seen and done it all at the club during his years of really good service, and it might not be the worst thing in the world to have him around the place for another season even as a back-up, if he was amenable to playing such a role.
Lustig is expected to be involved in international matches until the second week of June which would rule him out of Celtic’s first round of European qualifiers.
At his age a proper break is required when there is only six weeks of a close season but with Tony Ralston out in the cold it looks like Celtic will offer Lustig a new contract for next season.
Clubs are watching for players at younger and younger ages, very difficult to deal with but I don’t think that moving to Germany at 16 is for many Scottish players.https://t.co/ncPZRka4HB
— Joe McHugh (@videocelts) April 23, 2019
