Former Celtic star Stephen Welsh has outlined an awkward truth about how he was let down by the club's development system. Welsh joined Swansea City on a free transfer during the summer just gone, mutually agreeing to end his Celtic contract.
The 26-year-old made 43 league appearances for the Bhoys at senior level since his breakthrough in 2019, but he also spent plenty of time out on loan.
Most recently, Welsh had two loan spells with Motherwell, and it seems he learned more there than he did during his time coming through at Parkhead.
Welsh has enjoyed a superb start to life at Swansea, now earning a Scotland call-up, and he has credited now former Motherwell boss Jens Berthel Askou with having the biggest influence on his career.
“I owe a lot to Jens and the way he got me playing. He completely changed the way I play and the way I see football," Welsh said.
“I probably wouldn’t be playing in the English Championship now for a top team like Swansea and getting this Scotland call-up if it hadn’t been for Jens and Motherwell.”
Swansea are currently top of the Championship after a superb start to the season, and Welsh has been one of the best centre-backs in the second tier so far this season.
Swansea midfielder Jay Fulton recently praised Welsh after a win at Derby, saying: "A special mention to Stephen Welsh and Filip Lissah because we came here without Cam and Ben, who are big players and personalities in the squad.
"They have stepped up in the last couple of games. Welshy is a little bit older, but he is new to the league. They've stepped up for us."
Naturally, it's too early to question whether Celtic should have kept Welsh, and there is no telling whether he would have been better than Auton Trusty and Cameron Carter-Vickers, who are both very decent centre-backs.
Ultimately, it seems like Welsh really wanted to leave to ensure he continued to get regular football after his successful time at Motherwell, and the club decided to accommodate that wish, which was the right thing to do if they couldn't promise more regular football at Parkhead.
Having said that, it is a concern that Celtic couldn't find a way to get the best out of Welsh in the same way their Premiership rivals were able to. That doesn't say great things about the coaches who worked with Welsh, especially given it seems to be a tactical thing not any personality clashes.
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