After a series of arrivals, this was a day of departures for Celtic. With contracts running out, two players have now officially left the club. The first one is Greg Taylor, who brought an end to his glorious six-year run at Parkhead and has joined PAOK. The second one is Daniel Cummings, who has moved to the Premier League by joining West Ham United.
Both are players that Celtic fans would have wanted to stay under ideal circumstances. But it feels like they have departed in search of playing time, despite being in different phases of their careers.
For Taylor, it was a matter of remaining a starter, something that was not guaranteed at Celtic following the arrival of Kieran Tierney. On the other hand, for Cummings, there had never been much playing time available in the first place.
Despite having a standout campaign at the youth and developmental level, he made only one appearance for the senior team. So, it is understandable that Cummings decided to depart at the end of his contract rather than extend.
Celtic fans won't like what Daniel Cummings said in first West Ham interview
West Ham United recently announced the arrival of Cummings. And he made a very interesting point in his first interview with the club's official website. The now former Celtic striker said:
"I did a lot of research about the Club and there’s a pathway to the first team, and that's all you can ask for as a young player."
Was Cummings taking a subtle dig at Celtic and the take of pathway at Parkhead right now? We do not know. And to be honest, even if he was, he was not far from the truth.
That has been one of the big criticisms surrounding Celtic in recent years. And there is a lot of truth to it as well. A pathway into the first-team does not exist at this point in time. It simply does not and there is no denying it. Who was the last player to make the jump from the academy and become a starter at the senior level? Tierney, and it has been a decade since then.
Cummings spent more than a decade playing youth football for Celtic, did well for the B Team and did not get his chance. And unfortunately, this has been a recurring tale for the Hoops. This is something that needs to change as soon as possible.