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Sutton’s verdict on key Celtic appointment

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Chris Sutton has welcomed the appointment of Nicky Hammond by Celtic but asked why it wasn’t set up ages ago.

From the moment that Brendan Rodgers decided to dedicate his life to Leicester City it seemed inevitable that he would be joined by transfer guru Lee Congerton.

Although Celtic’s Head of Recruitment didn’t quit the club until April it was clear that someone would be required to co-ordinate and lead transfers during the summer window.

Hammond hasn’t been given any title but will officially start work on July 1 on a short term basis with a brief to improve on three near disastrous transfer windows.

In the Daily Record Sutton writes:

Nicky Hammond might just turn out to be Celtic’s most important signing of this summer. But why on earth has it taken so long to get him in the door?

Why is he only going into the club’s most important summer recruitment drive in years on July 1 when the first qualifier is on July 9. And why is he just a short-term appointment?

It’s a commendable move and needed to be done but it should have been done ages ago. Hammond should have been ready to go as soon as Lee Congerton left.

But at least it’s a step in the right direction and his dealings may just tell us whether the club’s ambitions lie in making an impact again on Europe or whether or not dealing with the domestic business is the priority.

The deal to sign David Turnbull from Motherwell is almost complete but at his media conference yesterday Neil Lennon admitted to wanting to bring in as many as six players.

Defensive options will be a priority with Mikael Lustig, Dedryck Boyata, Filip Benkovic, Cristian Gamboa and Emilio Izaguirre no longer at the club.

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