As one Celtic flop could be heading to the English Premier League, another is showing the club may have rushed him out the door too soon. Oh Hyeon-gyu is attracting significant interest from EPL clubs after failing at Parkhead. The second cast off is Gustaf Lagerbielke. The Swede is now just two games away from a Europa League final.
Lagerbielke was part of what seems like another slapdash transfer window for Celtic. The summer of 2023 saw Brendan Rodgers return to the club to replace Ange Postecoglou. It's not been unusual over recent years for there to be a shortage of centre-back cover at Celtic. That summer, the problem was triggered by Carl Starfelt leaving for Spain.
Maik Nawrocki had come in from Legia Warsaw, and Starfelt’s transfer saw a rapid move for Lagerbielke. Stories suggest that he shared the same agent as Starfelt, which sped up a deal. It all looked encouraging at the time.
Lagerbielke - sidelined at Celtic, heading towards finals elsewhere
Lagerbielke was thrown into early action and a Glasgow Derby, but seemed to do well. Although there were question marks over his pace. A couple of rash yellow cards away at Feyenoord didn't help his case. The Celtic fans aren't always patient, and it seemed neither was Rodgers. Before long, Lagerbielke was back on the sidelines and then even further adrift. In the end, he made just 10 Celtic appearances.
After a loan spell in Holland, he was sold to Braga for around £2.2m and has flourished there. Braga progressed through the Europa League. A 0-2 win for Lagerbielke and his teammates at Celtic Park last October highlighted the growing gap between the two sides.
Braga are now in the Europa League semi-final, where they face SC Freiburg. Lagerbielke also helped Sweden qualify for the World Cup finals. He will be very keen to show what he can do on those bigger stages. Especially as he will likely feel he wasn't given the chance to play at Celtic.
Was Lagerbielke an early sign of Rodgers temperament?
Celtic’s transfer signing issues are well-documented. The current problem is too many new players who aren't up to standard. Lagerbielke perhaps shows there are other underlying issues too. Was his lack of opportunity ability-based or an early sign of Rodgers ditching signings he didn't want or like?
It could be that some players need more time and chances in the side. Although I’m not saying that's the case with some of the recent signings. Michel-Ange Balikwisha, for example, clearly needs to be elsewhere. He is a Celtic gamble that has crashed and burned badly. On the other hand, and looking back, without some patience and understanding, we may have seen Nicolas Kuhn set aside after he failed to impress early on in his first half-season.
The answer isn't clear. Lagerbielke has done well at Braga and may go on to rub salt in the wound. If anything, the example shows that there is a lot of work needed behind the scenes at Celtic, especially in terms of signing and player management. We all know that. It’s now in the board's hands to make the right decisions this summer to make the necessary changes.
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