The last few weeks have been extremely busy for Celtic, as they have made plenty of additions and seen players depart as well. We have not seen this kind of urgency around Parkhead in a long time. Perhaps not even in the Ange Postecoglou era. This is a positive sign. But one potential exit might now be off the cards due to a recent injury.
Celtic have started their pre-season and their most recent game was against Cork City, which ended in a 2-1 win for the Hoops. Luke McCowan and Colby Donovan were the two goalscorers on the day.
But the worrying news coming out of the game was the injury picked by Stephen Welsh. He had to be brought off.
Now, there have been suggestions that he might require surgery. As reported by BBC, Brendan Rodgers said about the defender:
"He's done his shoulder again.
"It's the fourth time it's popped out. You know when it keeps coming out like that, there's the possibility of an operation so he has to have a wee think about that.
"By the time the physios got on, it had popped back in but the pain was too sore so we took him off."
Celtic transfer exit faces collapse due to injury
Of course, in the past, we have seen Kyogo deal with a shoulder issue as well. But he did continue to play on without having to undergo surgery. So, it is possible that Welsh could do the same, although it might not be a long-term solution.
The defender was expected to leave this summer but a surgery could derail those plans. Just a couple of days back, CeltsAreHere had reported that KV Mechelen were showing serious interest in signing Welsh on a permanent basis following his loan spell last season.
KV Mechelen were expected to push for a deal. But could this injury end up having an effect on that interest? We will find out soon. Let's see what the future holds.
Welsh broke into the Celtic first-team picture during the 20/21 campaign, playing a decent bit of football in the second half of the campaign. The following summer, the club would sign Cameron Carter-Vickers and Carl Starfelt, and the academy graduate has struggled for playing time since then.
It is pretty clear that Welsh does not have much of a first-team future at Celtic. At best, he will be a squad player. So, leaving might be the best step for him.