If you were asked to name a player who’s donned the famous Celtic jersey at Parkhead and been hailed by the world’s most expensive footballer, you’d probably turn your attention towards Virgil van Dijk.
The centre-back has turned into one of the best that the game has seen since departing the Hoops, but the colossal Dutchman isn’t the focus of this article. Instead, our attentions are on Timothy Weah, a man born out of football royalty and famous heritage.
The son of former Liberian Ballon d’Or winner George Weah, the 21-year-old's career has stuttered, stalled and never really taken off until now.
However, he will be eternally grateful for the platform given to him by Brendan Rodgers at Celtic. He signed on loan by the Bhoys from Paris Saint-Germain back in January 2019 and just days later, Neymar was hailing the immense potential in Weah’s locker.
“It is a very exciting move for him from what I have seen of his talent he has everything to go and be one of the top attacking players in Europe,” the Brazilian said.
Rodgers was clearly excited about what he could bring to the table, describing the 21-year-old as “sensational” during his time in Glasgow.
He only played half a season at Paradise but contributed to five goals in 17 outings. It was a fabulous glimpse of what the tricky forward could become down the line.
It never really happened for the American and he’s now playing for Lille, where he won Ligue 1 last term.
Once he left PSG, it will have been hard to envisage him ever winning the French top-flight, but it’s bizarre how football can sometimes work.
Weah wasn’t a regular starter for Les Dogues but he was a vital squad player, scoring five times throughout the season.
He has struggled to replicate the extraordinary feats that his father achieved but his price tag has begun to rise since leaving Celtic behind.
At the time of his arrival in Scotland, the attacker was valued at just £4.5m by Transfermarkt. Fast forward to the present day and the youngster is now rated at £10.8m by the same source. That's an eye-catching rise of 140%.
It’s a glowing indication of that potential which Neymar talked about a few years ago. Weah is finally starting to realise it and he should have Rodgers to thank.
Celtic remains his one and only loan spell in professional football, and without being given a platform to perform at senior level, he might not now be playing for a club as prestigious as Lille.
The former Hoops manager has always had a keen eye for spotting talent and he wasn’t wrong in his assessments of Weah.