Celtic have a lot of quality all over the pitch. But if there is one area where they are at their strongest, it might very well be their midfield. Callum McGregor and Reo Hatate are as close as it gets to nailed-on starters for the Hoops. Arne Engels was brought in for a club-record fee in the summer. Luke McCowan and Paulo Bernardo are good enough to start on any given day. And even Odin Thiago Holm, who has played rarely, was once considered the next Martin Odegaard back in Norway.
Yet, Celtic continue to be linked with midfielders. One has to wonder if that is a signal that someone like Holm, who has struggled for playing time, could be on his way out.
Mahamadou Diawara is a French midfielder Celtic were rumoured to hold an interest in back in the summer. And it looks like he is looking to leave Lyon soon, after barely getting any playing time.
As reported by L'Equipe (via MaxiFoot), Diawara has approached his management to find a solution. In this way, Lyon have started to open the door to a loan for their player, under contract until June 2028, rather than a permanent transfer. But the latter option cannot be ruled out either. Some of the teams interested in the summer transfer window are still interested.
Lyon make transfer exit decision amid Celtic rumours
It remains to be seen if Celtic are one such team who still hold an interest in Diawara. They did end up signing two midfielders late in the summer window.
Of course, Celtic are always on the lookout for highly-rated talents. And the name of Diawara would certainly fall under that category.
In fact, one has to wonder why the chances have not come for him at Lyon this season. He was playing earlier in the campaign but has completely dropped out of the picture.