Mark Wilson Would Be Concerned by Celtic Deal for Leigh Griffiths

Former Celtic defender Mark Wilson is unconvinced by Leigh Griffiths, claiming the club is taking a ‘big risk’ if his deal is extended.

The Scotland international’s latest deal was a four-year contract in which the final year was an optional extension that the club could unilaterally activate.

However, there is no indication as of yet that the club intends to activate such a deal.

Despite the prospect of his free agency, Griffiths recently confirmed that optimistic talks have been held with newly appointed manager Ange Postecoglou, who took charge of his first Celtic training session on Thursday.

Griffiths has been accused of a lapse of professionalism by ex-Hoops manager Neil Lennon, who claimed the 30-year-old was woefully unfit for much of the season.

Those claims were harshly refuted by Griffiths however, who has been undertaking extra physical training sessions in order to reach peak levels of fitness ahead of pre-season.

Wilson, speaking to fan publication Celtic Quick News, offered his perspective on his future:

“Leigh’s been giving his views over his situation in recent days.

“And I picked up on Neil Lennon responding strongly, having a go at him. The bottom line for me is Leigh will be very lucky to get another year at Celtic.

“But I’m getting a feeling now the whole situation is going to benefit his chances of staying.

“Before the break-up in the summer, I went on record making it clear Leigh’s time at Celtic was up. I thought he’d gone through too many managers who, more or less, had come to the same opinion of him — with concerns over fitness.

“It just built up into last season which was Leigh’s biggest disaster. His downturn in form, his lack of fitness, didn’t just cost him but the team also.

“So, I didn’t think there would be any way back for him. I just didn’t think he merited a new contract. It was self-inflicted. A wonderful player, I’m a big fan, but he’d left the impression he couldn’t be trusted when it really mattered.

“To then trust him again — with the need for a full rebuild — would appear to be a big risk.”

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Celtic will certainly not want to be burdened with an out-of-form Griffiths, though the forward appears to be working hard to atone for last season’s miserable fitness issues.

With a fresh pair of eyes and a new system under new boss Ange Postecoglou, Griffiths may feel he has a chance at redemption under the new tactician.

Trust is certainly a recurring issue for Griffiths, and he indeed represents a ‘risk’ given his past.

With Griffiths set to be a free agent in July, all eyes will be on Postecoglou and whether he can see Griffiths truly fitting into his plans.