Celtic's 2025/26 Summer transfer window: Stage: Blochairn hovering over the Panic button

Has 'pre-transition' season written all over it. Manager leaves end of the season, so no investment in players who the next manager might not like.

 

Rodgers said in an interview there he’s still looking for another striker on top of Yamada …

 

Brendan Rodgers has confirmed Shin Yamada is on the way to Celtic – but he’s still in the market for another striker.

The Japan cap is set to arrive in Scotland in the next 24 hours for a medical head of his £1.3m move from Kawasaki Frontale.

Rodgers will give Yamada a chance to stake a claim for the first team but he’s determined to add some serious firepower in the coming weeks.

The Hoops boss – who last night watched his side see off Sporting Lisbon 2-0 in Portugal – said: “He’ll have a medical over the next couple of days and we’ll have a look at him.

“We’ve lost a lot of goals so we need to replace that. Hopefully this can be one of a number of players we can bring in that aspect.

“He’s got intensity and workrate. It’s something the scouts have seen.

“In terms of the club, we will bring in players to develop and players for now. Even though he’s a bit older, he’s probably one of those that can give us that intensity and pressure.

“I need to look and see him when he comes in and hopefully he can do well. The idea was to bring him in and assess him.

“He’s a strong boy – but we’d want to add to our front line also.”

Former Hoops ace Odsonne Edouard has been touted for a possible return with Crystal Palace set to let him go.

But Rodgers said: “I’m not worried so much about a big name. It’s about the collective of the team.

“Big names don’t always give you want you need. This team needs hunger, goals and work rate and intensity.

“Big names don’t always give you that. It’s about big players.

“I just want players who are hungry to learn but also ready now. There are lots of players linked with us.

“Odsonne hasn't been on my radar, to be fair. I obviously know him but it’s about a player who will fit into the structure of the team.”

Rodgers admitted some of his fringe men are set to go with Luis Palma expected to move while Norwich City are chasing Yang Hyun-jun and Kwon Hyeuk-kyu has also been told he can leave.

He said: “Luis will probably go out on loan. There’s been a little bit of interest in Yang but he’s been a good squad player for us.

“Kwon is in a difficult position with the competition there so he’s obviously looking for a club.”

 

BRENDAN RODGERS insists Odsonne Edouard is NOT “on his radar” as Celtic close in on a deal for Japanese striker Shin Yamada.

The Hoops boss is desperate to add goals to his team ahead of the new season



Rodgers confirmed Yamada, 25, is set to join from Kawasaki Frontale.

But he insists he’s not even considered a swoop for ex-hero Edouard who is exiting Crystal Palace.

He said: “Odsonne hasn’t been on my radar, to be fair.

“I obviously know him but it’s about a player who will fit into the structure of the team


Rodgers confirmed Yamada, 25, is set to join from Kawasaki Frontale.

But he insists he’s not even considered a swoop for ex-hero Edouard who is exiting Crystal Palace.

He said: “Odsonne hasn’t been on my radar, to be fair.

“I obviously know him but it’s about a player who will fit into the structure of the team


I just want players who are hungry to learn but also ready now.

“There are lots of players linked with us.”



But Yamada is on his way, Rodgers added: “He’ll have a medical over the next couple of days and we’ll have a look at him.

“We’ve lost a lot of goals so we need to replace that. Hopefully this can be one of a number of players we can bring in that aspect


He’s got intensity and workrate. It’s something the scouts have seen.

“In terms of the club, we will bring in players to develop and players for now. Even though he’s a bit older, he’s probably one of those that can give us that intensity and pressure.

“I need to look and see him when he comes in and hopefully he can do well. The idea was to bring him in and assess him.

“He’s a strong boy – but we’d want to add to our front line also.”

 

Shots fired against French Eddie

 

Also sounds like he definitely sees Maeda as a left winger if he still wants another striker. I do think a guy who can play back to goal and take the ball in bring others into the game would be very positive for our style of play.

 

Sounds like Yamada is in same boat as Inamura based on that interview IMO.

 

Kasper (Sinisalo)

Johnston (Ralston)
Carter-Vickers (New CB)
New CB (Scales)
Tierney (Inamura)

McGregor (New CDM)
Hatate (Engels)
Nygren (McCowan)

New RW (Forrest)
New ST (Yamada, Osmand)
Maeda (Jota)

The squad is looking paper thin currently. I really don't understand our current ST options. Seems like way too much filler, not enough quality.

Ideally you'd try and punt Trusty, Idah, Yang, Tilio, Palma, Kwon, etc. That's probably another £12m-£15m there. I'd still expect at least 3 or 4 absolute game changing signings to arrive but know that isn't happening.

 

Another striker on top of Yamada doesn't make sense imo.

Even if Kenny and Osmund leave, that leaves Maeda, Idah, Yamada and whoever else we sign.

I'm guessing we're shifting Maeda back out to the left.

Maeda
New LW
Jota

New St
Idah
Yamada

New RW
Forrest
Nygren

A lot of work to be done.

 

He didnt say striker though. He said forward line. So may be meaning the couple of wingers we are badly crying out for.

Guess we may go for a striker on top of that if he doesn't like the look of Yamada

 

Yamada has also played wide right, which gives us flexibility as he could do a Maeda style role. With Osmand's pace he also might get game time on the wing

I think Bernardo will cover the McGregor role this season. With Engles & Hatate rotating and Nygren & McCowan vying for the most advanced role. As much as I'd like a beast of a CM that balance looks good. Inamura also looks decent so far

Six weeks left, players needed in the following order:

1) first choice striker
2) first choice right winger
3) first choice left sided centre back.
4) back up left winger who can cover on the right(potentially on loan as Jota is injured)
5) Strong ball winning centre mid
6) Back up left back.

1,2 &3 are essential and ideally before the qualifers. I think we'll be alright by the end of the window though, at least two will come in on deadline day (the left winger & CM are my bets)

 

How have we managed to put ourselves in this state? Its got a covid season feel about it. Dragging our heels and basically hoping the huns don't improve too much.

Our starting right winger is Forrest who last season BR said he couldn't play 90mins. His current back up is Tilio who is * awful and wants away.

Our starting left winger is really our best striker and Adam Idah is just not the answer for us, sure he will have some nice games but he also has hooked at half time games and that's simply not good enough.

Our midfield is our strong point but I argue we need more Aggression in it.

Our centre halves are CCV and a massive downgrade if it's Trusty or Scales.

KT & AJ are good starters but also pick up injuries.

We are MILES away from where we need to be and I've no idea why we do this. Already in net spend of minus 15mil so spend the * money Celtic.

If BR is offered a job next season elsewhere he will take it and absolutely nobody could blame him. Though I wonder why he come back as * all has changed.

 

Yes, but what about the people in charge of the purse strings? Are THEY looking to bring in another striker? Let's face it, Rodgers has been after a CF since Kyogo left and there's still no one in sight.

 

Rodgers comments about Yamada being another club signing just validates why so many people on here are already panicking about how this window is going to pan out.

You can’t blame people for feeling like that when this movie has literally played out before our eyes before.

This WILL be Rodgers last season.

He came back to make a dent in Europe and I think it’s fair to suggest, even without knowing much about some of these players, that Inamura and Yamada aren’t going to help him achieve that.

Just look at our squad. Where do you start?

Defence is rotten. KT and CCV are huge liabilities with their injury records. We could genuinely be looking at a defence of

Johnston Trusty Scales Ralston

Would it be the first time we’ve went to Ibrox or a CL qualifier with a make shift / second string defence early in the season?

Absolutely not. Its pretty standard for us, so no sure where the confidence is coming from that we’ll suddenly start signing players and be prepared for the season starting.

Midfield 3 of McGregor, Reo and Nygren looks promising with Bernardo, Engels and McCowan for back up. Still missing two key ingredients for me: physicality and pace. Our midfield gets overrun and outfought when games aren’t going our way and we are very vulnerable in transitions at European level because we lack these traits.

Wingers - Maeda. Who else? Happy to have Forrest in the squad from a culture/experience perspective but him, Yang, Tilio just aren’t cutting the mustard. Jota out for months on end. We need 2x first team ready wingers in pronto.

Strikers - Idah, Yamada, Osmand, Kenny. Can we be confident with any of them? There’s not a Celtic class striker on that list when you compare them to what we’ve seen in the last 20 odd years alone.

So much work to be done and as someone’s already said, we seem to work on one transfer at a time. Writing is on the wall for how this is going to turn out

 

100%

How many times have the board not delivered for Rodgers?

Too many for me to remember

 

One of people's biggest concerns with Rodgers coming back here as manager is his record in the transfer market, but now if we're scouting players from other markets like japan that don't feel like 'Rodgers signings' it's a sign of imminent disaster and we're a shambles not backing the manager.

Rodgers thought Idah was the main man so we stayed after him all last summer and didn't move on to other striker options, that was firmly backing the manager, do people really want us to dig deep for 'his' signings still? I'm not so sure.

Many have been crying for years that we have no clear scouting or person in the director of football type role and we rely on managers knowledge of players too much, that's what Tisdale is here for now, and that's what this looks like at times, people above the manager identifying players in markets they're not too familiar with but fit the profile of how we play as a team, like Inamura is a player none of us or Rodgers would have been aware of but looks a great fit. But seeing this actually happening it's now a bad thing, Rodgers should be unhappy and walk because he's not 100% in control of our transfer business?

I really don't know what some of our fans want, and I don't think they do either.