Celtic have been pretty open to the idea of bringing back former players during Brendan Rodgers' second spell as the club's manager. Of course, he will know a thing or two about Parkhead returns. Kieran Tierney, Jota and Ross Doohan have all been brought back and there could be more to come in the future.
Amid all this, the name of Odsonne Edouard has cropped up as a potential candidate to be brought back as he struggles to make an impact in the Premier League. Since joining Crystal Palace in 2021, he has scored just 21 goals for them. On loan at Leicester City last season, he was goalless.
Celtic know what Edouard is capable of at his best, having had him at Parkhead for four seasons, three of them as their first-choice number 9. Rodgers helped launch his career in Glasgow. Could he now be keen on a reunion as well?
The answer to that question seems to be 'no'. In fact, it looks like Edouard is not even on the manager's radar at this point in time and a signing is not on the cards at all. As reported by The Scottish Sun, he said:
"Odsonne hasn’t been on my radar, to be fair.
“I obviously know him but it’s about a player who will fit into the structure of the team."
Celtic stance on Odsonne Edouard return officially confirmed
Well, merely days after the Edouard to Celtic rumour cropped up, it has been put to bed. It does not get more reliable than the manager of the club himself when it comes to transfer speculation.
It remains to be seen what the future holds for Edouard, though. It is pretty clear that things cannot continue to go on like this for him at Crystal Palace. He still has a year left on his contract with the Eagles. Perhaps if he becomes available as a free agent in the future, Celtic could be more interested. But right now, a return does seem to be on the cards.
Celtic are close to signing a striker though. It appears that Shin Yamada will join the club soon and is set for a medical.