The January transfer window has been open for more than two weeks and Celtic they have yet to enter the market to strengthen their squad ahead of the second part of the season.
But that doesn’t mean that there wasn’t a lot of work behind the scenes Brendan Rodgers and the recruiting team is looking to add the group before next month’s deadline.
The Scottish Premiership the leaders are allegedly filed an inquiry about the possibility of a deal to bring Aston Villa winger Louie Barry to the team.
Apparently they are also Celtic interested in swoop to bring LAFC attacking midfielder Mateusz Bogusz to Parkhead, after failing to secure his services in the summer transfer window.
It was recently reports Sky Sports that the Hoops are close to signing a pre-contract agreement with Kieran Tierney to return to Glasgow for a second spell when his Arsenal contract expires in the summer.
As well as the winger, attacking midfielder and left-back, Celtic are also eyeing a potential move to bring another striker to the club this month.
Celtic want a new striker
According to Foot Mercatothe Scottish giants are one of a number of teams interested in a potential deal for Lille centre-forward Mohamed Bay to bolster their options up top.
The report claims that SCO Angers, Royal Antwerp, Como and Las Palmas are also considering a move for the 26-year-old striker, with Celtic also lining up a deal for the Guinean international.
Como and Las Palmas are said to have already made inquiries about swooping for the striker, while Marseille and Metz have considered taking the forward on loan for the second half of the 2024/25 season.
But Foot Mercato add that uncertainty over Jonathan David’s future at the club made them reluctant to part ways with Bay in the January transfer window, putting the striker in a difficult position.
The former Clermont Foot striker wants to play regular football and is open to a move from Lille to play week-to-week as he only has started three games in Ligue 1 this term.
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That suggests Celtic will need to convince Lille to part with the centre-forward before the end of the window, before convincing the player to decide to move to Scotland rather than another Ligue 1 side, or to Italy or Spain.
If they can get a deal over the line for the 26-year-old star in the coming weeks, then they could repeat what they blindsided the last time the seldom-used striker came to Parkhead from the Ligue 1 club.
Odsonne Edouard’s time at Celtic
Celtic first signed Odsonne Edouard on loan from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2017 after having only he started four Ligue 1 games in the 2016/17 campaign on loan with Toulouse.
The French striker thrived after being given the chance to play regular football in Scotland and ended the 2017/18 campaign with a comeback 11 goals in 29 matches in all competitions.
That convinced the Hoops to throw out a club record £9m to sign Edouard from PSG on a permanent deal in the summer of 2018, which proved to be a great deal for the Scottish giants in the long run.
As you can see in the picture above, the record signing for Celtic extended his 125 goals in 179 appearances for the club in all competitions, winning four titles in five years.
In the summer of 2021, Premier League side Crystal Palace swooped in to sign the striker for reported fee of £14mwhich could rise to £18.5m, and meant the club made a significant profit on the striker, while also getting five years of great service from him.
Celtic could find their next Edouard by making another foray into Ligue 1 to sign Bayo this month, as his form from previous seasons suggests he has the potential to make it big in Glasgow.
Why Celtic should sign Mohamed Bay
The £29k a week the forward joined Lille from Clermont Foot in the summer of 2022 and has only succeeded seven goals in 45 previous appearances for the club.
Bayo too scored five goals in 22 Ligue 1 matches on loan at Le Harve in the 2023/24 campaign. during that time, showing that the forward has struggled to score on a consistent basis in recent years.
The 26-year-old star, who was once described as “extremely interesting” player of talent poacher Jacek Kulig, has previously shown plenty of potential to be a lethal goalscorer during his two seasons as a first-team regular at Clermont Foot.
|
21/22 Ligue 1 |
Mohamed Bayo |
|---|---|
|
Appearances |
27 |
|
Objectives |
14 |
|
Big chances were missed |
11 |
|
Great chances were created |
6 |
|
Assists |
5 |
As you can see in the table above, Bayo showed his finishing quality in Ligue 1 in the 2021/22 season that led to his move to Lille, scoring 14 goals and missing just 11 ‘big chances’ in 27 games .
Kyogo Furuhashi, Celtic’s top scorer this season, is scored ten goals and has missed a staggering 17 ‘big chances’ in the Premiership, suggesting the Lille outcast could upgrade him from a defensive end perspective if Rodgers can help him get back to his best.
Bayo also made an attractive return from 22 goals and nine ‘great chances’ were created in 34 Ligue 2 starts during the 2020/21 campaign, a near goal or ‘big chance’ created every start on average.
That means the Celtic target has scored 36 goals and created 15 ‘big chances’ in those two seasons combined, showing there is potential for him to make a big impact in the final third – as Edouard did – if the Hoops bring him in and offer him regular playing time in the second half of this season.
Connected
It would be a big game for the Scottish giants, given his struggles for playing time and form in recent years, but it’s worth it when you consider the quality they could get from Bay if he returns to the form that was the screen for Clermont Foot.
