Celtic have a number of very good players in their ranks right now and have impressive depth all over the pitch. That is the result of constantly strengthening the squad during the time of Ange Postecoglou as the manager of the club. Of course, their performances have seen quite a few being linked with moves away in the summer as well.
Carl Starfelt is one such player who has been linked with a move to the Premier League lately. And if he was to leave, the club would need to bring in a new centre-back, as the Swede has been a nailed on starter since arriving in the summer of 2021.
Could Celtic look towards one of their former players, if Starfelt did indeed depart Parkhead in the future? Filip Benkovic could certainly be an interesting option to consider.
Benkovic has not ruled out a Parkhead return someday. As reported by Football Scotland, the Croatian defender said:
"“Well, you never know in football. From my side, now I’m here in Germany and I’m enjoying playing football for this club.”"
Former Celtic favourite does not rule out Parkhead return
Benkovic has spent time at Celtic on loan in the past and he was very impressive during his spell at the club. Many fans even wanted him to be signed on a permanent basis.
That did not happen and he returned to Leicester City. Things did not go according to plan for him there though. He was not able to break into the first-team plans at King Power Stadium.
Several other loan spells followed but Benkovic has never really delivered on the early promise that he had shown at Celtic. He would leave Leicester City and joined Udinese in early 2022. Opportunities were hard to come by there as well and he currently finds himself on loan at Eintracht Braunschweig in the German second division.
At Eintracht Braunschweig, Benkovic is finally back to playing some consistent football once again. He is still just 25 years of age and can bring his career back on track for sure. As for a return to Celtic, that feels unlikely right now, but never say never in football.