Diego Laxalt admission hands Celtic Europa League boost

Diego Laxalt’s admission has handed a Europa League boost to Celtic following his arrival on a season-long loan from AC Milan.

Celtic pulled off a major coup on Deadline Day by completing the signing of Diego Laxalt on a season-long loan from AC Milan. And after being linked with a number of left-backs through the course of the window, the Hoops might have just managed to land the best option at the last minute out of nowhere.

One worry about Diego Laxalt’s arrival though was his availability for the club’s game against AC Milan in the Europa League. As we know already, Celtic have been drawn with the Italian giants in the same group in what promises to be one of the biggest games in the competition this season.

Players don’t play against their parent clubs in league competitions but there is no such rule in UEFA competitions. There were fears that the two clubs could still thrash out a gentleman’s agreement which would see Laxalt miss the tie but now the Uruguayan himself has confirmed that he is allowed to face AC Milan if picked to do so. This is a massive boost for Celtic as Laxalt is expected to a huge upgrade on Greg Taylor.

Taylor has blown hot and cold as the starting left-back at Celtic and it had become clear that he is not at the level yet to be a first-team regular. Thus, the arrival of Laxalt fills the need for a proven player in that position.

Laxalt’s AC Milan career might have been dissappointing but he was one of the most highly-rated talents in the Serie A while playing for Genoa. And the 27-year-old has also made 24 appearances for a very strong Uruguay national team.

There is no question that Celtic have got their hands on a great player here who could play a huge part in the club’s 10IAR campaign this season.