Celtic manager Martin O’Neill was clearly not satisfied with his central midfield options following the closure of the January transfer window last Monday night.
While the Hoops added five new faces to their squad, including three on deadline day, all the arrivals were either for the defence or attack.
It meant that Celtic began to explore deals for free agents once the window had slammed shut, with a deal for former AC Milan and Chelsea midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko collapsing as O’Neill switched his attentions to convincing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to move to Parkhead.With that move for the former Arsenal and Liverpool star now complete, the Northern Irish manager has some big selection decisions to make.
Paulo Bernardo’s Struggles Continue at CelticPaulo Bernardo has found minutes hard to come by at Celtic this season, having joined the club on a five-year deal in 2024 following a successful loan spell.
The Portuguese midfielder has ultimately proved to be a flop since then and he has been an unused substitute for their previous five Scottish Premiership matches.
The 24-year-old was given a rare opportunity to impress in this weekend’s Scottish fifth round cup tie against Dundee at Celtic Park, but it ended miserably as he was hauled off at half-time by O’Neill and replaced by Benjamin Nygren.His performance was described as being ‘anonymous’, after the Glasgow giants rejected a loan approach from an unnamed Danish team in the final days of the January transfer window.
While Bernardo’s future is surely in severe doubt with other transfer windows around Europe and the world still open and Oxlade-Chamberlain’s arrival, it might be time for another Celtic player to leave too.
Celtic Must Get Rid of Reo Hatate
Celtic are in need of a major refresh in the summer, no matter how this campaign ends, and one of the players that needs to go in 2026 is Reo Hatate.
The £1.4m Japan international once grabbed matches by the scruff of the neck for the Bhoys and was the subject of a rejected £10m offer from France in the summer of 2024.
However, just 18 months later and the 28-year-old just isn’t performing to the level he once was in a green and white shirt.He, like Bernardo, was given a rare opportunity in the XI against Dundee having only started two of Celtic’s previous eight Scottish Premiership matches.
But while he fared better than his Portuguese teammate, he still wasn’t up to scratch and the Bhoys now need to get rid of him as soon as possible.
It was only last week that it emerged that Hatate had been offered to Brazilian club Palmeiras by intermediaries, which suggests he is open to an immediate exit.
With their window open until March 3, there is an opportunity to seal an exit in the next days – whether it be loan or permanent.