Tsoanelo Letsosa is the latest teenager to decide that his future lies away from Celtic.
The attacking midfielder has been a regular in the B team this season but the lack of a pathway towards first team football is a major obstacle to development.
A number of players such as Liam Morrison and Barry Hepburn have opted to move away with that duo selecting Bayern Munich once they had turned 16 with Manchester City and Leeds United also signing directly from the Celtic Academy.
At the age of 16 playing in the Lowland League does have advantages but a second or third season playing against Cumbernauld Colts, Edinburgh University and Caledonian Braves is unlikely to produce first team players for Celtic.
At 16.31 yesterday the Daily Record reported:
Tsoanelo Letsosa has turned down a new contract at Celtic and is set for a move to England.
The midfielder had been a part of Celtic’s B team in the Lowland League this season.
The 18-year-old has knocked back an extension and is exploring options south of the border.
Letsosa has informed Celtic of his decision not to re-sign and has indicated that he will be moving on freedom of contract.
It is a blow to Celtic as Letsosa, who is South African-born, has been with the Celtic academy since he was 12.
The only consolation for Celtic is that they are likely to get a significant six figure development fee in terms of compensation.
This season Celtic sent players out on loan to Queens Park, Dunfermline and Cork City with only Ewan Otoo at Dunfermline getting regular game time, playing in nine League One matches after moving to East End Park in mid-February.
Since the Hearts game which we struggled in but still won I have been giving some constructive criticism to Ange and the team,only for a couple FUDS on here to have a go at me.
That result last night has been coming for weeks and we asked for that a sore arse and we got one.
People on here last week laughed when I said we better get our act together for this final coming up,well,I will repeat myself again Inverness will give us a game when the final comes round and I’m certainly not taking it for granted that the treble is in the bag.
So any criticism aimed at Ange and the players today they deserve it and more, and as I said previously I’m having nightmares about that headline again should Caley prevail in that final and it’s a possibility, but Supercaley Go Ballistic Celtic Are Atrocious.
As for the 2 FUDS who had a go at me last week it appears to be you 2 are on a sponsored silence today.