The vast majority of Celtic’s transfer business has been wrapped up ahead of deadline day but there are still a few things for Ange Postecoglou to address.
Two of the biggest pieces of business they’ll conduct will fall in the outgoings category, with two star players expected to leave Parkhead behind.
What’s the word?
Odsonne Edouard looks to be heading to Crystal Palace before the 11pm deadline on Tuesday, with the Frenchman finally putting a long-running saga to bed.
However, he’s not the only Hoops player who looks as though they'll be packing their bags and heading south of the border.
Ryan Christie’s contract expires in January, so this summer was the last opportunity for Celtic to receive a fee for him. At one point it looked as though he may pen terms on a new deal, but Postecoglou seems happy to sell him.
Alan Nixon reported the following, citing there had been some drama in Christie’s possible move away. He tweeted: “Ryan Christie. Late drama. Burnley agreed a deal. Bournemouth have now come in. More wages at Burnley. But better chance of playing where he wants at Bournemouth.”
Journalist Pete O’Rourke then confirmed the attacking midfielder’s decision: “Bournemouth are set to pull off a coup by landing Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie.”
Fans fuming
Although Celtic have signed Kyogo Furuhashi and Liel Abada, who can both play in wide areas, losing Christie so late in the window will surely anger Celtic supporters.
That’s a feeling they definitely wouldn’t have felt if he’d left before playing a match under Postecoglou.
The Scot was severely out of form last season and took pelters from pundits as a result. He scored just twice in his final 24 league outings of 2020/21 and had a woeful habit of shooting from range.
However, this season he has witnessed quite the turnaround, putting himself on a pedestal for English clubs to begin a bidding war over his services.
In fact, Christie has been one of Celtic’s most consistent players since Postecoglou was given the reins. He scored a wonderful diving header against Jablonec in the Europa League and then picked up a quite tremendous hat-trick of assists when Celtic smacked Dundee 6-0.
No player has produced more key passes per game (four) in the Premiership this season than Christie, while only Ralston (two) has managed more dribbles per match than the Scotland international’s 1.8 an outing.
On that evidence, he is a vital player in the squad, and Hoops fans will surely be angry to see him leave. A replacement may have already been drafted in Jota but he will take time to settle in.