Filip Benkovic has been named in the Croatia squad for next month’s u-21 European Championships to be staged in Italy.
With three group matches being played between June 18 and 24 there is no prospect of him being available for Celtic’s July Champions League qualifiers even if a second loan deal with Leicester Could be agreed.
???????? #Croatia U-21 preliminary squad list for the @UEFAUnder21 European Championships ????#BeProud #Family pic.twitter.com/QraCtQkfVK
— HNS (@HNS_CFF) May 24, 2019
Benkovic made a massive impact on Celtic during the first half of the season but hasn’t featured much under Neil Lennon despite recovering from a knee injury that ruled him out for almost two months.
With Dedryck Boyata moving to Hertha Berlin the next Celtic manager will have to move quickly to bring in central defenders to supplement Kris Ajer, Jozo Simunovic and Jack Hendry. Ajer will be involved in Norway’s Euro qualifiers next month.
Celtic’s first pre-season match will be played on June 26 away to Pinkfeld with the first Champions League qualifier staged on July 9 or 10.