Celtic ended this season with a domestic double, winning all ten matches they played in April and May, reclaiming the Scottish Cup thanks to Saturday's victory over Dunfermline Athletic at Hampden. However, a summer of change await in Glasgow's East End. It remains to be seen whether or not Martin O'Neill will remain as manager, while loanees including Julián Araujo, Benjamin Arthur, Joel Mvuka, Junior Adamu and Tomáš Čvančara will return from whence they came.
However, there are likely to be many more comings and goings at Parkhead. So, here are the five players, who featured in Saturday's Scottish Cup final, most likely not to appear in hoops again.
Marcelo Saracchi
We could have included him on the list of departing loanees, as it seems very unlikely that Marcelo Saracchi will be seen at Celtic Park again. The 28 year old spent the season in Glasgow on loan from Boca Juniors, making 27 appearances, totaling 967 minutes, of which only ten were starts. It remains to be seen if that is enough to earn him a spot in Marcelo Bielsa's Uruguayan World Cup squad.
Saracchi regularly comes on around the hour mark, replacing Kieran Tierney, whose minutes have been carefully managed. However, it is probably not worth paying a fee for someone to fill such a role. Nevertheless, given Tierney's injury history, Celtic will need to sign somebody, but recruiting a player to be a clear back-up is never easy.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
If Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain does depart Celtic this summer, he will do so having not made many appearances for the club, but he has certainly contributed a massive moment. The England international's stoppage time winner against Livingston on his Premiership debut in February was ultimately pivotal in the title race, also the only scorer against St Mirren in April.
In total, Oxlade-Chamberlain appeared only 12 times for the Hoops, an unused substitute for the final four league games, before a brief cameo off the bench in Mount Florida at the weekend. Having been released by Beşiktaş last summer, he was without a club for around eight months, training with former side Arsenal to keep fit. Thus, he only signed a very short-term deal with Celtic, so it is very much up in the air as to whether or not he'll stay.
Kelechi Iheanacho
Similarly, Kelechi Ịheanachọ was also an opportunistic addition, arriving in September after the transfer window had closed following the sale of Adam Idah to Swansea. In the end, the Nigerian proved to be one of the most pivotal figures in the entire season.
Ịheanachọ frankly struggles to stay fit. He played just six minutes in the Premiership between 19 October and 22 March, with 11 of his 24 appearances lasting half an hour or less. Nevertheless, he scored crucial late winners against Kilmarnock on debut, Dundee and Hibs, before converting the 97th minute spot-kick at Fir Park to defeat Motherwell. One of the most iconic goals of recent years. Ịheanachọ's goal against Dunfermline at Hampden underlined his quality, so it'll be fascinating to see if he is offered a new deal. A brilliant player, but only in short bursts, so is he worth it?
Benjamin Nygren
Now we get to the sad and controversial potential departures section. Despite all the chaos, few players in recent times have enjoyed better first seasons at Celtic then Benjamin Nygren. He scored 21 goals across all competitions, on top of nine assists, picking up all of the club's player of the year awards. The £1.7 million paid to Nordsjælland appears to be an absolute bargain.
However, could his first season at Parkhead prove to be his only campaign at the club? Well, no supporter hopes this is the case, but it has to be considered a possibility. Nygren is likely to be a starter for Sweden at the World Cup and, with the Blågult in a group alongside Tunisia, Netherlands and Japan, there is potential for his stock to significantly rises. Graham Potter deployed him alongside Anthony Elanga and Viktor Gyökeres as Sweden came through the play-offs, so a couple of strong showings stateside this summer could see some huge bids arriving for Nygren's signature.
Daizen Maeda
Lastly, 12 months later than anticipated, has Daizen Maeda played his last match for Celtic? Last summer, the Japanese international made it clear that he wanted to leave the club, reportedly very frustrated when told he could not do so, amid interest from VfL Wolfsburg. This time, after going to the World Cup himself with the Samurai Blue, he will surely move on to pastures new.
Since arriving in January 2022, scoring on his debut against Hibs, Maeda has racked up 212 appearances in Hoops, netting 79 times, as well as converting the winning spot-kick in the 2024 League Cup final against Rangers. Supporters were sceptical at first, but Maeda is a bone fide fans' favourite, so his seemingly inevitable departure will be devastating once it arrives.
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