Celtic’s Transfer Strategy Has Changed – But Not for the Reason You’ll Think

The signing of Kasper Høgh has given Celtic supporters something they’ve been crying out for: genuine excitement.

For once, it feels like Celtic have actually targeted a player with a proven pedigree at a level above what we’ve become accustomed to.

The pace of the transfer window? Still painfully slow.

The negotiations? Still frustrating.

The reluctance to simply pay an asking price? Still very much there.

But the profile of player Celtic are now pursuing is undeniably different.

The question is… why?

You’ll hear people suggest the club have finally realised they need to compete properly in Europe. I wish I believed that, I genuinely do.

Unfortunately, Celtic have spent the best part of two decades proving they don’t learn those lessons.

Repeated Champions League qualifying failures. Years of underachievement.

Millions upon millions left on the table.

Celtic have missed out on more than double the much lauded £77m that sits in the bank from losing Champions League qualifiers.

Yet the recruitment model barely shifted.

If Europe was going to change their thinking, it would’ve happened years ago. Instead, I think something else has changed.

For the first time in a long time, Celtic no longer have the comfort blanket of domestic bliss era carrying on unchallenged.

Hearts pushed Celtic right to the final day.

Rangers continue to outspend Celtic in terms of net transfer investment across recent windows.

Laugh at them all you like, but eventually any club gets something right if they keep throwing enough at it.

Meanwhile Celtic have spent years telling supporters this is the most successful era in the club’s history.

Here’s the contradiction.

If that’s true… why has the gap become smaller?

Shouldn’t it be getting bigger?

How do you dominate Scottish football for years while simultaneously allowing your rivals to close the distance between themselves and you?

That doesn’t happen by accident.

It happens through complacency.

For years, every domestic trophy we have won has acted as a shield for the Board.

Questions about Europe anyone?

“We’ve won another league title.”

Concerns about recruitment?

“We’ve won another Treble.”

Lack of investment?

“Can’t be that bad – Look at the silverware.”

Domestically they have always had an answer and of course I am very glad of this, don’t get me wrong!

But what happens when that answer starts looking less convincing?

What happens when the league itself no longer feels guaranteed?

The fear of exposure as to how incompetent they are suddenly sparks a change in tact.

As ever, this sudden change in profile of player Celtic are signing is because we are only ever a reactive club.

Never pro-active.

Reactive.

I don’t think Nicholson and the numpties suddenly woke up one morning and discovered what Champions League football demands and were suddenly going to treat the competition with the respect it deserves.

I think they realised domestic success itself could be under threat.

That’s a completely different motivation.

Martin O’Neill’s potential Ultimado moment undoubtedly played a huge part as well.

I wonder how many potential signings have been put to the Celtic boss and he has batted the idea away.

He strikes me as someone who isn’t interested in signing projects simply because they’ll maybe be worth more in three years’ time.

We know what Martin’s football philosophy is.

Win football matches – WFM. Remember?

He’s here to win.

Now.

That changes conversations behind closed doors. It must have!

Would Casper Høgh have arrived twelve months ago? I’m not convinced.

Would Celtic previously have targeted players already performing in European competition rather than simply promising prospects?

We can all remember Brendan’s first summer window after his return too.

I was convinced with such expenditure on the managers salary and the fact relationships must of been so hard to mend to get him back that we would see Celtic change tact that summer in the transfer market.

Then it became the 9 in a row summer, 9 signings – no mainstays.

Supporters deserve to be excited by footballers.

Somewhere along the line we’ve become conditioned to discuss balance sheets, resale values and net spend before we’ve even watched a player kick a ball.

We are getting as nervous as the Board of numpties when we spend a couple of quid.

That isn’t how it is supposed to work!

The board deserve credit for finally bringing in a player of Høgh’s calibre.

But let’s not kid ourselves into believing everything has changed overnight.

The recruitment process still drags.

The negotiations still feel painfully cautious and nervy.

The spending still appears heavily dependent on outgoing sales.

The big difference this Window is simply the calibre of player they’re eventually getting over the line.

All 2 of them.

Let’s hope this is the beginning of something bigger.

But if history tells us anything, Celtic won’t truly change until they stop reacting to threats from other clubs and start setting the standard again.

Keep Your Eyes On The Board.