The Celtic Bhoys
Fansided

3 major problems that Celtic must solve next season

By StevieMac

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - FEBRUARY 06: Scott Bain of Celtic is beaten by the shot of Allan Campbell (un seen) during the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Motherwell at Celtic Park on February 06, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - FEBRUARY 06: Scott Bain of Celtic is beaten by the shot of Allan Campbell (un seen) during the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Motherwell at Celtic Park on February 06, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next

Right-back gaps

Celtic
Jonjoe Kenny, Celtic. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images) /

Celtic looked in a decent place when Jeremie Frimpong took his chance last season and broke into the first-team with some exciting displays. That helped overcome the injuries to Hatem Abd Elhamed and meant across the two players we had decent cover at right-back.

When Elhamed got some opportunities to step in and play, he’d gone backwards from earlier in the season. He was making some occasional errors and giving goals away, a high-profile example being in the Ferencvaros Champions League qualifier. His personal issues and being unsettled have been highlighted recently with set to rejoin Hapoel Be’er Sheva.

With Frimpong now gone as well, that position does not look as strong anymore. Jonjoe Kenny has started well since coming in on loan from Everton. It’s still early days and many players make impressive starts before fading away. He looks to be a decent option initially and we’ll get a better view as we play out the remainder of the season. His strength was reportedly more defensive than attacking, he has had less to do defensively in the first two games but has shown promise going forward.

Let’s not forget Kenny is only on a short-term loan and while Lennon talked about ongoing possibilities beyond that, it’ll take big money for a fee and decent wages to secure him if the club and player both want that.

As right-back cover Celtic have some possible options but none are ideal. Kris Ajer did a great job there in recent matches, and while he could do so again if called upon, he is better used at centre-back to solve bigger problems there. Anthony Ralston also featured recently and is probably the next go to player if Kenny was unavailable.

The Hoops are thin on cover, if Kenny continues as he has started, proves his defensive capabilities and stays clear of injury, then it may just work as a plan for now. Looking ahead, two right-backs are definitely needed.

Home/Celtic FC News