Tounekti Needs to Leave Celtic – St Johnstone Proved That Point
Aodhán Ó Conchobhair 
DUNDEE, SCOTLAND - AUGUST 15: Celtic's Benjamin Nygren celebrates with Sebastian Tounekti after scoring to make it 4-0 during a Premier Sports Cup Second Round match between Dundee United and Celtic at The CalForth Construction Arena at Tannadice, on August 15, 2026, in Dundee, Scotland. (Photo by Paul Devlin/SNS Group via Getty Images)
I think the time has come for Celtic to move on from Sebastian Tounekti.
Not because he is a bad player. Not because there isn’t talent there. But because he simply isn’t showing enough to be considered Celtic quality.
And the St Johnstone game only reinforced that belief.
We’ve seen flashes from Tounekti since he arrived. There have been moments where you can see why Celtic splashed the cash, but moments aren’t enough anymore.
Celtic need players who can consistently contribute, especially when the squad is supposed to be competing domestically while also preparing for another European campaign.
Against St Johnstone, Tounekti looked exactly like what I think he is at the moment: a player who would benefit from leaving Celtic and playing regular football somewhere else.
The biggest issue is that we are running out of excuses.
He’s had opportunities.
He’s been given minutes.
He’s been around the first-team environment.
And yet I’m still sitting watching him thinking, “What exactly does he give us?”
That’s not where a Celtic winger should be.
Look at the competition around him. Haissem Hassan has arrived and immediately looked exciting. Camilo Durán offers pace and aggression, Yang is starting to come into a game, and Forrest is still proving useful.
Jota will surely displace Tounekti quite easily when he comes back.
Where does that leave Tounekti?
Realistically, outside the first-choice plans.
And if that’s the case, the worst thing Celtic can do is allow him to spend another season getting the occasional 10 or 15 minutes.
Let him play every week.
Let him go somewhere where the expectation is that he starts, takes responsibility, and has to produce.
Because there is still potentially a player in there.
But Celtic isn’t a development camp where we can afford to wait indefinitely for someone to become good enough.
The St Johnstone performance should be viewed in that context. It wasn’t one terrible game that suddenly means Tounekti isn’t good enough. It was another piece of evidence in a much bigger picture.
I don’t think he is Celtic quality right now.
And rather than stubbornly keeping him around the squad, Celtic should make the decision that benefits both parties.
At least send him out on loan.
Give him six months or a full season of regular football, goals, assists, pressure, and responsibility.
Then reassess.
Because if he comes back and looks like a completely different player, brilliant. Celtic has developed an asset.
But if we keep him here playing scraps of football, we learn absolutely nothing.
Celtic need players ready to contribute now.
Tounekti isn’t there yet.
And St Johnstone proved it.
Key Takeaways
- Celtic should move on from Sebastian Tounekti as he isn’t showing enough quality to meet their standards.
- Despite some flashes of potential, Tounekti fails to contribute consistently for the team’s needs.
- With competition increasing and other players proving their worth, Tounekti realistically falls outside the first-choice plans.
- To develop his skills, Celtic should loan him to a club where he can play regularly and take on responsibility.
- Celtic needs players who can contribute now, and St Johnstone’s match demonstrated that Tounekti isn’t ready yet.
I think the guy had a talking to from Martin O’Neill at half time last night ? Get your finger out of your arse son as you are are weak and as soft as wet tissue paper ! He certainly was more positive and stronger in his crossing of the ball second half …go for the jugular every time !
He’s short on confidence, which is showing in how indecisive he is. He doesn’t have the pace or ability to wait on the defender blinking first before he then goes outside or in, he needs to make up his mind before hand and then give that decision 100%. He did get some balls into the box and on another day could have had an assist or two, but he’s not delivering consistently enough in the minutes he’s being given. I think there’s a player in there, and the coaching staff must see something in him. But I agree, the development he needs looks to lie somewhere else at this moment in time. The squad looks to be developing beyond him.