Wilfried Nancy is gone and Martin O'Neill is back. That has been the real positive news to come out of Celtic this week. But other than that, there has not been much else. The expectation is for them to strengthen the squad significantly during this January transfer window in order to give the Northern Irishman the best chance of turning things around and leading them to the league title.
Historically, Celtic have mostly struggled to get deals done in transfer windows though. It looks like this one could be no different. In fact, one that the media had suggested as being close might not happen at all.
Of course, we are talking about the rumours that Kyogo Furuhashi was set to make a return to Celtic this January. The Japanese striker has had a tough time since leaving Parkhead. His time at Rennes was a complete flop and he would leave less than six months after joining the French club. The move to Birmingham City has not been significantly better with the 30-year-old scoring just once in 25 appearances for the English club so far.
Naturally, the idea of a return to Celtic had been floated. But when asked about it during a press conference, O'Neill said that Kyogo's return would be 'unlikely' as he wants to prove himself at Birmingham City.
Martin O'Neill confirms worrying Celtic transfer U-turn
There it is, folks. It looks like a move for Kyogo, which many had thought was just a matter of time after yesterday's reports, is not on the cards at all.
That has to be considered another blow for Celtic. While Kyogo has struggled for form since leaving, the club know exactly what they will get from him.
He scored 85 goals in 165 appearances for the Hoops and someone like O'Neill could have gotten the best out of him. But unfortunately for Celtic, it looks like he still has aspirations of making it at Birmingham City. In that case, we can only wish him well and turn our attention towards other strikers.