On message Glasgow Times bang the drum for mystery man Mark Lawwell

Kenneth Ward of the Glasgow Times (formerly Evening Times) has published a glowing opinion piece on the appointment of Mark Lawwell to Celtic. 

At the age of 37 Peter’s boy is being put in charge of First Team Scouting and Recruitment but seems very reluctant to introduce himself to the Celtic support. 

The announcement from Celtic was filled with quotes from Ange Postecoglou alongside a picture of the current manager, it was almost as if there are things about the appointment that some people at Celtic are uncomfortable with. 

Reassuring the support, looking at the next stage of Postecoglou’s overhaul, The Glasgow Times reports: 

That’s why the announcement this week of a new head of first team scouting and recruitment in Mark Lawwell should be received as a hugely positive step. After the furore surrounding the departure of Neil Lennon, and the derision towards Lawwell’s father, Peter, the erstwhile chief executive of the Parkhead club, over what appeared at least to some extent to be the appointment of “his man” in Lennon, the announcement of his son in this crucial role at the club may have raised a few eyebrows among the browbeaters amidst the Celtic support. 

But it shouldn’t. If someone by any other name was appointed to the club after a decade in the same role at City Football Group, the umbrella network that manages the football-related business of, amongst others, Manchester City in the Premier League, New York City in MLS, Melbourne City in the A-League and Yokohama F Marinos in the J-League across three continents, then they would be welcomed with open arms. 

Postecoglou’s experience at the latter club in Japan has already proven to be a useful tool in the Parkhead side’s transfer policy, with Kyogo Furuhashi in particular proving to be a revelation since signing from Vissel Kobe, with Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi also joining from the Far East. Lawwell’s connections likewise could prove crucial in balancing bang for buck in an increasingly saturated transfer market. 

Celtic’s squad requires substantial reinforcement to have any chance of competing in the Champions League group stage next season – even finishing third in their section would be punching above their weight as a pot-four side. If Lawwell can tap in to that network he has developed over the past 10 years across the globe, perhaps he can unearth further hidden gems who would fit in to the development model the club currently operates under and allow them to continue to build for years to come. 

It’s certainly a positive step that shows Celtic’s desire to be prepared. As a scout, I am sure that Lawwell always operates under that mantra. 

Kenneth Ward, Deputy Sports Editor of the Glasgow Times clearly doesn’t do much in the way of research. 

According to similarweb, during March with hundreds of page published daily Glasgow Times had 1.9m pageviews during March, an average of 61,290 per day.