Neil Lennon got his wish on Monday night when the transfer window “slammed shut” with Odsonne Edouard still a Celtic player.
There have been times when it looked as though the 22-year old was heading out the door, however, he now has to get his head down and focus on all things green and white as the gaffer revealed his plans for his talisman who has been far from his fluent best in recent weeks, as reported by The Daily Record.
“We’ll have a sit down with him. Obviously he’s away on international duty now so we probably won’t see him until the middle or towards the end of next week.
“But, yeah, I think it’s important that we have a chat with him and get his mind refocused now on the next 10 months of the season.
“It’s a huge season, if you look at the games we’ve got coming up after the international break they’re absolutely mouthwatering so we want him back and at his best for us.
“There will be a lot of people talking in his ear behind the scenes and I’ve had a few sit downs one-on-one with him.
“He’s here, he has to understand that, and he has to understand now that he’s a very important player for us going forward.”
There is no doubt that Celtic are better off for having Edouard for as long as possible, the prospect of having him line up alongside Albian Ajeti is a mouth watering one in a strike force that will cause sleepless nights for defenders across the Premiership.
Is Edouard staying the biggest deal of the summer?
Yes
No
Whether or not he will take to the field – if the fixture goes ahead at all – in the first derby of the season after the international break remains to be seen having tested positive for Covid-19 whilst away with the France Under-21 side – the timeline suggests that he will be available, however, a fortnight is a long time in the current climate.