Brendan Rodgers confirms Celtic player is not in his plans

Celtic won the Premiership and League Cup double last season and have made a superb start to this campaign. Despite that, one has to raise questions about the club's recruitment in recent times. They have done enough this summer although they have signed a few decent players. Still, it has been much better than their effort a year ago.

Celtic signed plenty of players in the summer of 2023. But not one of them has ended up establishing themselves as a regular starter in Brendan Rodgers' team.

Luis Palma came close, making a fantastic start to life at Celtic Park before fading away as the season progressed. Paulo Bernardo was never really a regular starter while on loan from Benfica but showed enough potential to be signed on a permanent basis this summer.

Other than that, there was not much else in the name of impact. Many of the club's signings from last summer are already out on loan. One who is still at Celtic despite his lack of playing time is Gustaf Lagerbielke but that might not be for long.

Brendan Rodgers confirms Celtic player is not in his plans

Rodgers recently praised Lagerbielke for his attitude although the manager did admit that the defender is not in his plans. As reported by CeltsAreHere, the Celtic boss said:

"To be fair to Gustaf, for him to go and play is important.

“It’s been a difficult move for him, but I have to say he’s been absolutely brilliant.

“I recognise how difficult it has been for him, for at times not to be on the bench, and to be training here with a small group on a Saturday morning or a Sunday morning.

“He’s not been in my plan to play, but he’s been a great teammate and a real privilege to coach. He deserves an opportunity to go and play."

Lagerbielke was signed by Celtic from IF Elfsborg last summer for a transfer fee believed to be in the region of £3 million. And he has had some big moments at Parkhead. Whether that be scoring a winner in the Champions League against Feyenoord or keeping a clean sheet away at Ibrox against the Rangers.

But overall, things are clearly not going well. Lagerbielke has never looked like the right fit in Rodgers' system and once again, one has to question the recruitment. There is interest in the Swedish international's signature though. A move to Heerenveen was rumoured to be close. Let's see if it materialises.