Celtic agree two exits after transfer deadline including starlet praised by O’Neill

It’s been a frantic few days of business for Celtic, with Martin O’Neill using the closing hours before Wednesday’s UEFA registration cut-off to bring in a flurry of fresh faces as he looks to rebuild momentum following the club’s stunning Champions League exit to LASK.

While the Hoops suffered one of their most devastating defeats in years out in Austria, their domestic dominance has continued, starting the Premiership season off with four wins from four and a five-point lead already built over rivals Rangers, who have been slow out of the gates under new manager Derek McInnes.

Fans have criticised the board throughout the summer for a lack of transfer activity, but it’s fair to say the loss of Champions League football spurred them into action as they sealed six signings in the closing stages of the summer transfer window – albeit missing out on long-time target Gvidas Gineitis.

Joel van den Berg’s move from PSV and Jordan Lotomba’s arrival from Feyenoord were both wrapped up shortly after Tuesday’s 3-0 victory over Aberdeen, a game in which Oliver Sorensen and Shim Mheuka had already got their first taste of first-team action from the bench.

REUTERS/Yves Herman

Sam Johnstone was also named among the substitutes that night, while Chelsea’s Landon Emenalo, still just 18, put pen to paper too, even if he’s a little way off being fit enough to feature.

That’s on top of the summer additions of Camilo Duran, Kasper Hogh, Mika Baur and Haissem Hassan, meaning O’Neill has now brought in ten new faces since the window opened.

Celtic agree two late exits

The business hasn’t just been one-way, either. The likes of Arne Engels, Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate, Luis Palma, Johnny Kenny and Maik Nawrocki have all left in permanent deals as Celtic look to balance the books, and there’s also been movement at academy level.

Following Thursday’s transfer deadline, League One side East Kilbride have confirmed a new cooperation agreement with Celtic, and as part of it midfielder Liam Kennedy has signed for the League One club on loan. He will be joined by goalkeeper Marcus Gill and they will link up with defender Rhys Dargie, who had already made the move to K-Park last month, giving the South Lanarkshire side three Celtic loanees on their books.

The arrangement follows a similar model to a previous partnership with Ayr United, which saw Kyle Ure, Ben Summers, Francis Turley and Jude Bonnar all gain regular first-team football under Scott Brown, and comes as Scottish football continues to grapple with how best to fast-track its academy talent following a wider SFA summit on the issue.

Kennedy in particular heads to East Kilbride on the back of a strong run of form. The midfielder has featured in pre-season friendlies and got as far as the matchday squad for the recent 2-1 victory over Falkirk, which says plenty about how the coaching staff already view him.

O’Neill himself has already sung his praises, telling reporters: “We have a couple of young lads playing the B team who I think will be really good players. By the time that they are, I will be well and truly gone! But they will be good players.

The manager said he would “love to watch (him) at Hampden one day playing for Scotland”, and regular League One football with Gill between the posts and Dargie also in the building should only help that development continue.

Attention now turns back to the first team, who make the trip to face St Mirren this weekend looking to build on their win over Aberdeen. With so many fresh faces now in the building, Saturday’s clash in Paisley, live on Sky Sports, could offer an early glimpse of how O’Neill intends to blend his new arrivals into the side as the season gathers pace.