Ronny Deila is looking to sign Celtic player this summer

Ronny Deila enjoyed quite a bit of success during his two years at Celtic but ultimately, he faced a lot of criticism as well, during his second year in charge of the Hoops and would ultimately decide to step down at the end of the 2015/16 campaign. Since then, he has found success elsewhere as well, most notably at New York City FC, with whom he won the MLS Cup.

Now, he finds himself back in European football with Belgian club, Standard de Liege. And it looks like he might have his eyes on a Celtic player this summer.

The player is none other than Mikey Johnston. While the winger had never made an appearance for Celtic under the management of Deila, he must have been very aware of him, as the now 23-year-old was the most highly-rated player at Parkhead while coming through the youth ranks and many even believed he could develop into a 20-goal-a-season star at the senior level.

A report from Voetbalbelgie reads:

"Mikey Johnston has been among the options for Standard in our transfer file for a while. His file is now moving. The 23-year-old left winger is under contract with Celtic Glasgow until mid-2025. Ronny Deila was a trainer at The Bhoys and still maintains good contacts there."

Could Johnston be on his way out of Celtic to join Deila at Standard de Liege?

It is safe to say that Johnston’s career at the senior level has not panned out like many people expected it. After a bright start at Parkhead, he has struggled to remain fit for the past several years and as a result, has never been able to nail down his spot in the starting XI.

According to stats from Transfermarkt, he made 20 appearances last season but played just 661 minutes of football in total, with no goals and just a solitary assist to his name.

Thus, Johnston could be helped by a loan spell away from Parkhead. He is still just 23 years of age and has plenty of time on his hands to get his career back on track. But it is unlikely that he will get too many opportunities in Ange Postecoglou’s side at this point of time.

A loan move to Belgium makes a lot of sense as a result. Of course, the most important thing for him would be to remain fit. His current deal with Celtic runs till the summer of 2025.