da betsul： Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers wouldn't close himself off to the prospect of landing one of his former players from his first spell at Parkhead, according to one pundit.
Celtic transfer news…
da bwin： Last weekend, the Hoops laboured to a disappointing 0-0 draw away to Hibernian at Easter Road in the Scottish Premiership, which enabled their arch-rivals Rangers to cut the gap at the top of the table from eight points to five points after they defeated Heart of Midlothian on Sunday.
Despite Rodgers bringing in nine signings during the summer, only Luis Palma and Paulo Bernardo featured against Hibernian in Edinburgh. Celtic outcast Mikey Johnston was preferred to new arrival South Korean winger Yang Hyun-jun from the substitutes bench in the closing stages of the affair despite Celtic shelling out around £2 million on the latter back in late July.
Marco Tilio and Kwon Hyeok-kyu are yet to play in a competitive fixture for Celtic, whereas Odin Thiago Holm and Gustaf Lagerbielke now seem to be on the periphery of Rodgers' plans after initially being utilised in the early portion of the campaign. Maik Nawrocki is still recovering from an injury problem and Nathaniel Phillips has been a rotational option since joining on loan from Liverpool.
Celtic have still made a strong start to life in the Scottish Premiership and are unbeaten in their first ten league matches. However, there is a growing consensus among some supporters that although the first-team squad is numerically strong, there is a noticeable drop-off between the predominant starting players and those who replace them from the bench.
In the summer, Rodgers commented on Celtic's transfer activity and expressed his desire to bring more quality into his squad. As per Sky Sports, the Northern Irishman stated when asked if he was content with the business they had conducted: "I think every manager will tell you they maybe wished they could have done one or two more signings."
Celtic's summer signings
Player
Previous club
Fee
Yang Hyun-jun
Gangwon FC
£2 million
Maik Nawrocki
Legia Warsaw
£4.3 million
Paulo Bernardo
Benfica
Loan
Luis Palma
Aris Thessaloniki
£3.5 million
Gustaf Lagerbielke
Elfsborg
£3 million
Nathaniel Phillips
Liverpool
Loan
Kwon Hyeok-kyu
Busan IPark
£1 million
Marco Tilio
Melbourne City
£1.5 million
Odin Thiago Holm
Valerenga
Undisclosed
Tomoki Iwata (obligation to buy activated)
Yokohama F. Marinos
Undisclosed
Ryan Christie to Celtic verdict
Earlier this month, TEAMtalk reported that Celtic were interested in bringing Ryan Christie back to Parkhead in light of his contractual situation at Bournemouth, which could see him leave the Vitality Stadium on a free transfer in 2024 when his deal is set to expire.
Celtic boss Rodgers is believed to be a huge fan of the player and previously worked with Christie during his first spell at Parkhead, where the Scotland international notched 41 goals and 44 assists in 151 appearances (Christie statistics – Transfermarkt).
Now, former Scotland international Alan Hutton has suggested that Rodgers wouldn't close the door on a potential reunion with Christie, who has previously been labelled "incredible" by former boss Gary O'Neil, at Celtic. Speaking to Football Insider, the pundit said:
"I do not think Brendan Rodgers would close the door to any player that he thinks can make his starting XI better. If there is something to be done there then there is always a possibility. Is coming back always a good thing? I am not so sure.
"I think when you are in the Premier League and doing well, playing games, I think there will be other options as well. Celtic are a huge club going for trophies, playing in European competitions so there is always a draw there."