The initial impression of news around the left-back position at Celtic is of the club being caught out in their planning. After what turned out to be a terrible winter transfer window in so many ways, there are fears that the Hoops have been left exposed without enough talent or cover in that area. But is it as bare as it seems there?
We now know Kieran Tierney is making a return to the club. That is quite a coup. The question then became about when rather than if he was coming back. Unfortunately, Arsenal were not ready to sanction a loan exit in the middle of the season.
Alex Valle also completed a move to Italian side Como. His loan from Barcelona was cut short early. He had been an invaluable cover for Greg Taylor and leaves a gap that needs filling in the back four. Alexandro Bernabei left this winter too, although there was no surprise there.
Celtic did sign Jeffrey Schlupp on loan from Crystal Palace on deadline day. But is left-back even his best position? He has played further up the pitch for the majority of his career.
Celtic may need forgotten man after terrible transfer window
That leaves Greg Taylor, whose contract runs out this summer. It may well be that this entire situation leads to an acceptable contract extension for the Scot.
The club do have some alternative options as well though. Liam Scales has left-back experience and came on as a sub there against Ross County recently. That may have been to add height and strength and shore up the defence to see the game out, but he provides an option as cover.
Then with the fans all keen to see academy graduates given a chance, there is a potential opportunity for Adam Montgomery. He is 22 now and it feels like a lifetime ago that he had got a bit of a run in the first-team, early on during Ange Postecoglou's stint as Celtic manager.
His most recent appearance was back in December 2021 although he returned to the bench for the Ross County match earlier this month. Loans and injury have kept him out of contention for a while now but he is back with the first-team squad.
While at first, it may not seem ideal, perhaps that in-club answer is a possible way forward. It’s likely we’ll see Montgomery given a chance at left-back at some point. Scales will likely appear there too as cover or sub for Taylor. Of course, that is if the club are not viewing Schlupp as the primary option in that area of the pitch.
The question is whether that’s enough to help keep Bayern Munich at bay in the Champions League. Whoever we have at left-back, that will be a tough game and the options available to Brendan Rodgers are not particularly great.