Perhaps the only area in Celtic’s squad which could have been viewed as a weakness until now is their defensive midfield. The club did not have a enforcer in the middle of the park, even though have some of the best technical players in all of Scotland. On the other hand, Nir Bitton left the club at the end of last season and was not properly replaced.
Aaron Mooy has been brought in but he is not a natural defensive midfielder but more of a deep-lying playmaker or regista. Thus, the lack of a real presence in the middle of the park could have turned out to be a problem for Celtic, especially against teams like the Rangers or those in the Champions League.
But now, Celtic have agreed a deal to sign a proper defensive midfielder as well, in a move that will surely be a huge boost for Ange Postecoglou’s squad.
As tweeted out by Fabrizio Romano, Celtic are now set to sign Danish midfielder Oliver Abildgaard. A deal is in place, and an agreement has been reached.
Celtic have agreed deal to sign Danish defensive midfielder
Standing at 6′ 4″, it is safe to say that Abildgaard is a a presence in midfield. He is currently with Rubin Kazan and put up some incredible numbers for them last season.
His stats when it comes to aerial duels won and overall defensive duels won, were incredible and he might be exactly what Celtic need at the moment. Yes, his passing numbers were not great but then, Rubin Kazan were a side who got relegated last season and probably played most of the time on the backfoot.
Thus, one would expect that Abildgaard’s passing stats would be boosted significantly once he joins Celtic.
At the end of the day, this is a very positive move on the part of the Hoops and fulfils arguably the only need this squad had.