Neil Lennon continues to achieve his number one aim of the transfer window by keeping hold of the squad that won 9-in-a-row so convincingly, but this hasn’t stopped speculation to the contrary and according to a report in The Scottish Sun, much of this is absolute nonsense.
Kristoffer Ajer has been rumoured to be on his way out of Parkhead for some time now and his previous agent did little to quell the stories by claiming that he would definitely leave this summer – Leicester City and AC Milan have been the two clubs at the front of the “queue” with the Italian giants said to have bid £13.5million for the Norwegian international only for Celtic to dismiss the report.
Despite the obvious benefits for selling the player at such a price, it would leave the Hoops gaffer extremely short at the back, given that Jozo Simunovic has already left the club and the unfancied, Jack Hendry, is also on his way out.
Celtic have been linked with a possible incoming target – also rubbished – in the shape of striker Shon Weissman, but with a full complement of strikers Lennon would be unlikely to spend big on a player who would spend most of his time on the bench, unless he was prepared to make room in his squad given recent events.
With Leigh Griffiths’s future far from certain, the Parkhead boss may feel that he can’t go into such a big season with such a volatile player in a key position – despite his form in 2020 prior to the break.
These won’t be the last stories in the press to have no foundation, however, with just one or two players expected to be signed, Celtic fans will have to be content with the squad that has been so dominant on such an unprecedented scale.