A Celtic source has revealed to Football Insider that the Parkhead club are looking to secure the services of a central, and preferably defensive, midfielder in the January transfer window.
Although the article doesn’t go on to name specific targets, it does suggest that Tottenham Hotspur’s Victor Wanyama could be a target, despite seemingly being around forever, the big midfielder is still only 28-years-old and has found game time limited through injury and the emergence of Harry Winks and Eric Dier in recent seasons.
Wanyama has previously expressed that he would be open to a return to Parkhead and with the transfer window soon to open, it is a potential deal that would be of benefit to everyone. It is believed that Spurs are open to offers for the Kenyan international after he pulled the plug on a permanent move to Club Brugges at the last minute.
Celtic are currently working with a rotation of Callum McGregor, Scott Brown and Olivier Ntcham in midfield with the latter being preferred in a more attacking role by Neil Lennon, either as cover for Ryan Christie or to move Christie into a wider attacking position.
McGregor is on course to break the 70 game mark after playing 69 games last year and over 30 already this term, the evergreen (so to speak) Scott Brown won’t be far behind him, despite reaching the ripe old age of 34, he is showing no signs of slowing down and has barely missed a game with 26 appearances for his club.
The problem Lennon faces is if one of the three players he deploys in the deeper midfield roles gets injured, this would lead to the same situation that he currently has up front with Odsonne Edouard as his only match-fit striker and having to play every game.
The run up to the winter break is fixture packed and Lennon will be hoping that he is able to keep the spine of his side fresh with so many important games still to come, including the biggest game in his tenure so far, the Betfred League Cup final against city rivals Rangers.
Should Celtic re-sign Victor Wanyama?
Yes
No
Lennon is well covered in defence and on the flanks but there is no doubt that a striker and defensive midfielder will be his key targets in January, a move for a player desperate for game time at a place he knows well could just be the answer he is looking for.