Celtic

Claire Thomson
BBC Sport Scotland

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Right-back Alistair Johnston says Celtic want another fast start to the season as the champions strive to retain the Premiership title.

Brendan Rodgers' side kicked off last term with seven successive league wins and only dropped four points in their opening 16 games as they charged clear at the top.

Celtic kick off the new campaign at home to St Mirren on Sunday and will find out their Champions League play-off opponents the following day.

"Three points count now as much as they do at the end of the season," Canada international Johnston told Celtic TV.

"When we look back at last season, we had a good start and that made a difference come the end of the season.

"If you do your work early you can take a lot of pressure off, especially when the season gets really busy in the winter.

"We know how important it is to come out of the blocks strong, and this year we have Champions League qualifiers as well, so it's a big month for us from the get-go."

Johnston says unfurling the league flag this weekend will give Celtic's new signings "an understanding of what the minimum requirements are at this club".

He added: "It's also motivation from day one because we want to do that again. You're expected to win trophies and that's what it's all about."

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• This fixture is a repeat of Celtic and St Mirren's final league game of last season, a 1-1 draw at Celtic Park. Celtic have won both previous occasions that they have faced the Buddies on matchday one of a league season, winning 5-1 in 1916-17 and 1-0 in 2008-09.

• St Mirren have lost 11 of their past 13 meetings with Celtic in all competitions (D2), while away from home the Buddies have lost 33 of their past 38 visits to the Hoops (W1 D4).

• Celtic have won their opening game in 16 of the past 17 league seasons, the only exception being 2021-22 when they lost 2-1 to Hearts under Ange Postecoglou. When playing at home on matchday one, Celtic have won 22 of their past 23 openers, the other being a 0-0 draw with Kilmarnock in 2007-08.

• St Mirren have won their season opener in both of the past two Scottish Premiership campaigns after only winning on matchday one in two of their previous 13 top-fight participations beforehand (D4 L7).

• Celtic's Brendan Rodgers is unbeaten in 12 league openers as a manager across spells with Liverpool, Celtic and Leicester City (W10 D2) since a 3-0 defeat with Liverpool against West Brom in 2012-13.

Celtic 24-year-old Adam Idah is among the names Udinese are pursuing to strengthen their attack following Lorenzo Lucca's departure to Napoli. (Tutto Udinese), external

Adam Idah is going nowhere amid suggested interest from Udinese as Celtic and the Irish striker both see a big season ahead for him with the Scottish champions. (Mark Hendry on X), external

Plymouth Argyle have made a loan offer for 25-year-old Celtic centre-back Stephen Welsh, who spent last season with Mechelen, with the Belgian club having been unable to reach an agreement with the Scottish champions to make the move permanent this summer. (Sky Sports), external

Norwich City have bowed out of discussions to sign 23-year-old Celtic winger Yang Hyun-jun and the Championship club have moved on to other targets. (Mark Hendry on X), external

Go Ahead Eagles have made it clear that they will not sell Celtic target Jakob Breum for anything less than £5m this summer, with the Dutch club having to pay 25% of a sell-on to the 21-year-old winger's former club, Odense. (Daily Record), external

Basel have agreed a deal to sign Andrej Bacanin for a £2m fee plus £600,000 add-ons from Cukaricki, who previously reported interest from Celtic and Rangers in the 18-year-old midfielder. (Fabrizio Romano on X), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Tino
Fan writer

As the new season kicks off this Sunday, it's hard not to feel a mix of both frustration and optimism.

The lack of meaningful first-team signings so far has been disappointing, especially with clear areas still needing strengthened.

As fans we expected more urgency in the transfer market, and - Kieran Tierney and Benjamin Nygren aside - the silence has only added to the tension.

That said, there's still a strong sense of belief in the core squad and our ability to once again have a successful campaign domestically.

Europe, however, may be a different matter.

In Brendan Rodgers we have a manager who we trust to get results where it matters most, but the lack of backing (so far!) leaves us wondering what the man himself must be thinking.

A strong start on Sunday against St Mirren would help settle some nerves, but some quality reinforcements wouldn't go amiss either.

In the meantime, here are our big predictions for the 2025-26 season:

Where will you finish in the league and why?

Celtic will once again finish top of the pile, making it 14 titles from the last 15 available. Put simply, Rodgers doesn't know how NOT to win this league and will ensure we do so once again - whether he's here next season or not.

Who is the best signing or has he not signed yet and who should it be?

It simply has to be Tierney. For us to secure the signing of a player who has spent his past six years with Arsenal and is still just 28 years of age is outrageous. Celtic have no right to sign a player of KT's calibre and it's clear his passion for the club has been the deciding factor here. To see him walking out this weekend on flag day will be a massive moment for all.

What do you want from your manager this season?

Domestic success, progress in Europe, and his signature on a contract extension running beyond the end of this season.

Who will be the breakout star in your squad?

From a homegrown point of view, there are high hopes for young Dane Murray at centre-half, but that aside this could (and will!) be a massive season for Arne Engels. Time for Celtic's £11m man to shine.

What is your one major concern?

That the longer it goes unresolved, the uncertainty around Rodgers' long-term future may cause unrest among both fans and players alike. He is vital to everything Celtic do and the sooner this one is resolved the better.

Tino can be found at The Celtic Exchange, external

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Celtic hope to bolster their squad with new signings "this week", says manager Brendan Rodgers.

The Scottish champions, who begin their title defence against St Mirren on Sunday, have reportedly had three bids rejected, external for Go Ahead Eagles attacking midfielder Jakob Breum and are said to be in talks, external to sign 19-year-old Manchester City centre-back Jahmai Simpson-Pusey on loan.

Kieran Tierney and Benjamin Nygren are Celtic's main new arrivals amid six incomings this summer, while key men Nicolas Kuhn and Greg Taylor have departed and strike talisman Kyogo Furuhashi was sold in January.

"Yeah, well, we hope this week there might be some news on that," Rodgers told Sky Sports of imminent transfer activity.

"Coaches and the transfer market don't move at the same pace. A coach always wants a player in immediately, but the transfer market doesn't always work like that.

"A lot goes into it, but it's also the reason for pre-season. You want your team together as quickly as you can so you can get good work in, get the togetherness, get the spirit, everything formed.

"But we know that traditionally it can be a challenge. By the end of the window, hopefully that will be the case. In the meantime we're working very, very hard. We're excited by what's here at the moment and looking forward to the weekend."

Rodgers has previously stressed the need for reinforcements and says it is simply "arithmetic".

He added: "It's purely counting. We've lost players and we want to replace those players with quality. So it's not an opinion, it's where it's at.

"We've lost key players and we want to replace those as quickly as we can to keep developing. I'm very hopeful that we can do that."

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers is keen on Liverpool midfielder Stefan Bajcetic, with the English champions open to letting the 20-year-old Spanish defensive midfielder leave in the summer transfer window and a loan-to-buy deal being the likely structure. (TeamTalk), external

Celtic are in talks to sign 19-year-old Manchester City centre-back Jahmai Simpson-Pusey on a season-long loan, but a number of clubs in England are also keen. (Sky Sports), external

Marco Tilio's departure from Celtic to Rapid Vienna on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy has been delayed because the Scottish champions will not let the 23-year-old forward leave until they secure a replacement. (Kurier), external

Go Ahead Eagles are standing firm on their valuation of Denmark Under-21 attacking midfielder Jakob Breum, with the Eredivisie club looking for at least £5m after Celtic had two bids for the 21-year-old rejected - the latest offer being £2.6m - but negotiations are ongoing. (Sky Sports), external

Twente submitted an offer for Jakob Breum that was higher than Celtic's initial bid of £1.5m for the winger and Go Ahead Eagles have since rejected the Scottish champions' latest £3m offer as they hold firm for £6.5m. (The National), external

Go Ahead Eagles chief executive Jan Willem van Dop says they will only sell one of Oliver Antman, the 23-year-old who is a target for Rangers, and fellow winger Jakob Breum, for whom they have rejected bids from Celtic, this summer. (De Oosttribune), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Chris Sutton feels his former side Celtic are starting the new season with a weaker squad than last term.

The ex-striker has also warned the Scottish champions they could be taking a Champions League risk if they do not strengthen soon.

Celtic have brought back Kieran Tierney and signed Sweden midfielder Benjamin Nygren and Japan attacker Shin Yamada, but fellow summer signings Hayato Inamura and Callum Osmand could take time to reach first-team level.

The Glasgow side sold Nicolas Kuhn - one of last season's star performers - to Como and will be without injured winger Jota for a long-term period. Left-backs Greg Taylor and Jeffrey Schlupp have also departed.

"If you look at the squad going into the season, it's still a little bit light," Sutton said prior to Celtic's league opener with St Mirren on Sunday.

"Brendan Rodgers, everything I've seen him hint and say, he feels the same. The fact Brendan talked about ambition, he is always quite calculated in what he says and the words that he uses.

"I think that's a little warning shot across the bows to say 'we need to bring players in'. It's fair to say the squad aren't as strong right now as they were at the end of last season, and that's not ideal. But there's still plenty of time left in the transfer window.

"If you look back at last season, Celtic won the league in the first half of the campaign. They won 16 of their first 18 games, set off like a house on fire and there was real momentum going into the season from pre-season. It doesn't quite feel like that at the moment.

"And they didn't have the burden of the Champions League qualifiers last season and we know how enormous they are for the club."

Celtic will have to win a play-off to avoid dropping into the Europa League and the first leg will be on August 19-20.

"Celtic have been in this position before where they are signing players when the Champions League qualifiers have already begun," Sutton added. "That's not ideal.

"You don't want them learning on the job when the Champions League has started and then missing out. We know how massive these games are. If you're slightly off it, then you can get beat.

"We will find out at the end of next month whether Celtic have done enough. It's okay for pundits to say 'the board need to do more', but at the end of next month if Celtic bring another few players in of quality which is going to lift the squad, all well and good.

"If not, then clearly people are going ask questions about why they are weaker now than they were at the end of last season."

Celtic and Strasbourg have submitted offers for Manchester City's 19-year-old English defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey. (Football Insider), external

Meanwhile, Celtic are keen on Josh Brownhill, who announced his Burnley departure on Monday, but Brendan Rodgers' side could face competition from West Ham United. (Record), external

Basel and Sturm Graz are two of the five potential opponents Celtic will face in the Champions League play-off round. (Sun), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish gossip

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Former Celtic striker Cillian Sheridan says Brendan Rodgers "won't let up" in his pursuit of new signings.

So far this window Celtic have brought Kieran Tierney back to the club following the expiration of his Arsenal contract while goalkeeper Ross Doohan and forward Callum Osmand have also signed on free deals.

Hayato Inamura, Shin Yamada and Benjamin Nygren take the number of new signings up to six so far.

However, Rodgers' side already lost Kyogo Furuhashi in the January window and winger Nicolas Kuhn followed suit this summer, departing for Serie A side Como.

And Sheridan thinks Rodgers will still feel there's more work to be done to his team.

"I think last season probably proved Rodgers' case where if you do back him, he is showing an improvement in Europe," he told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"Take away the Borussia Dortmund game, they were a lot more competitive in the European games. I think everyone could see there was a real improvement.

"I don't think Brendan Rogers is the type to just be happy with that. He'll want to make an improvement and keep building and keep improving.

"I think he's shown he's not afraid to have a of a slight pop at the board in terms of the players they're bringing or how much they're backing him. I don't think he'll back down on that either.

"He's got his own standards and his own expectations on what he wants to do with the club, especially in Europe. So I can't see him letting up in terms of his demand for getting the supply of players that he needs."

Go Ahead Eagles are waiting to discover whether Celtic return for Jakob Breum after turning down three approaches for the Danish wide man from the Scottish champions. (Herald - subscription required), external

Celtic have raised their offer for Breum to £3m after bids of £1.5m and £1.75m, which included add-ons, were rejected by Go Ahead Eagles for the 21-year winger. (Glasgow Times), external

Sarpsborg sporting director Hampus Andersson has revealed Celtic have yet to revive their interest in winger Sondre Orjasaeter this summer after a £4m offer was rejected in January, with the Norwegian club demanding £7m for the 21-year-old. (Record), external

New Celtic forward Shin Yamada, 25, believes he has superior speed and strength to former club favourite Kyogo Furuhashi. (Sun), external

Read Monday's Scottish gossip

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Scott Brown is expecting 19-year-old Celtic midfielders Jude Bonnar and Kyle Ure "to add quality" to his Ayr United side on loan this season.

Bonnar made his third appearance as the former Celtic midfielder's side lost 2-1 in their final Premier Sports Cup group game away to St Mirren on Sunday.

And Brown credited the half-time substitute with helping turn the game in the Championship side's favour after going into the break two goals down to their top-flight hosts.

"The change of shape and personnel helped and I thought Jude coming into the middle of the park was exceptional and that helped us keep the ball - also a bit of urgency and aggresseness as well," he told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound.

"Coming from Celtic to come in and play for us like that, it looks like he's been part of this team for some time."

Bonnar scored in his debut as a substitute in Ayr's opening 4-0 win over Arbroath and started their 3-0 defeat of Forfar Athletic, while Ure played the closing minutes in Paisley.

"Obviously, if you are good enough, you get game time and Jude so far has shown he's not out of his depth and he can probably push on again," Brown added.

"Kyle we've not seen too much of just yet, but he was only just in training the other day and gets his minutes on the park today.

"The two of them are fantastic footballers and it's another two lefties in the team and they have a good understanding of the game and they want to better themselves.

"Hopefully they can get game time and, at the same time, add quality on the pitch."

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Celtic will host Falkirk in the second round of the League Cup.

Brendan Rodgers' side welcomed the Bairns in last season's quarter finals, ultimately winning 5-2 in a game John McGlynn's side went ahead in twice.

Ties are due to be played on the weekend of 16th/17th August.

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Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers reiterated the need for transfer activity as his side prepare to begin their Premiership title defence against St Mirren on Sunday.

Rodgers' side finished their pre-season fixtures with a penalty shootout win over Al Ahli following a 1-1 draw.

While the Northern Irishman believes his current group of players are "in a really good place", he would like to add new faces for the challenges ahead.

"Well, I think the squad that we have currently is in a really good place," Rodgers said after the Al Ahli match.

"The guys that are here have worked very, very hard but we need to improve this squad in general so I'm hopeful that we can do that over the coming weeks.

"But the guys that have been with us from the first day and the guys coming in, they've worked so hard, put so much into it. And now we go back, we'll have a really good week when we get home, and then we'll look forward to the first day of the season next Sunday."

Celtic's most recent signing - Japan forward Shin Yamada - scored the winning penalty against Al Ahli after penning a four-year deal last week.

"He has been settling in," Rodgers said. "It's never easy, when you think where he's come from on the other side of the world, and then he's in straightaway, adapting to a new intensity, which is always tough. And then you're travelling.

"But he's worked very hard in training. It was nice for him to get that little moment at the end and this obviously rounds off our pre-season in terms of fixtures.

"It was a good exercise for us. Obviously, pre-season is about fitness, but it's also about togetherness and spirit and I think the players showed that in the second half. It's a nice way to finish."

Celtic could be in line for a sell-on fee with their former right-back, Josip Juranovic, being lined up for a big-money move to English football from Union Berlin. (The Herald On Sunday), external

Read the rest of Sunday's Scottish gossip.

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Celtic finished their pre-season preparations with a 5-3 win on penalties after a 1-1 draw with Asian Champions League winners Al-Ahli in the Como Cup third/fourth play-off.

The Scottish champions had been humbled 5-1 in their semi-final by Ajax, while the side who finished fifth in Saudi Arabia's Pro League lost 3-1 to the pre-season tournament's Italian hosts.

Having put Celtic's second-half collapse against the Dutch down to fatigue of pre-season training, manager Brendan Rodgers named a completely fresh starting XI.

Al-Ahli took the lead after 23 minutes through former Porto and Braga winger Galeno's acrobatic hitch-kick from 12 yards.

Celtic levelled when Luke McCowan's corner to the back post was volleyed back into the six-yard box by James Forrest and centre-half Auston Trusty prodded home.

New striker signing Shin Yamada thought he had scored the winner after making his first Celtic appearance as a substitute but was ruled offside.

McCowan came close to a winner three minutes from time, but his strike came off a post and the match went into a shoot-out in which the Glasgow side prevailed, with Yamada scoring the deciding spot kick.

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Kwon Hyeok-kyu has joined Ligue 1 Nantes on a permanent deal as he departs Celtic without having made a first-team appearance in his two-year spell.

The South Korean midfielder, 24, joined Celtic from Busan IPark in his homeland and spent time on loan with fellow Premiership sides St Mirren and Hibernian.

The 24-year-old has signed a three-year deal with Nantes.

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On 25 July 1997 Celtic signed striker Henrik Larsson from Dutch side Feyenoord with little knowledge of just how monumental an impact the Swede would have.

Larsson followed manager Wim Jansen to Glasgow as Celtic were preparing try to stop Rangers from winning a 10th successive title.

And the Sweden striker helped his side do just that. Despite not getting off to the best start - including scoring an own goal in his first European outing - Larsson went on to score 19 goals in his debut season in Glasgow and inspire Celtic to their first league title in a decade.

Larsson would go on to make over 300 appearances in the hoops, scoring 242 goals - including 15 against Rangers. He was a driving force in Celtic's run to the Uefa Cup final in 2003, two years after helping them to a domestic treble, and won four league titles, two League Cups and two Scottish Cups before joining Barcelona.

When that departure finally came in 2004, it was clear Larsson had cemented himself as a Celtic legend.

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Celtic defender Adam Montgomery has joined fellow Premiership side Livingston on a season-long loan.

The 23-year-old moves to the newly-promoted Lions having spent last term with Championship outfit Queen's Park, playing 14 games and scoring once.

Montgomery has made 20 appearances for Celtic but hasn't featured since December 2021, with a raft subsequent loan spells including Aberdeen and St Johnstone.

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We asked for your views on the 5-1 Como Cup defeat against Ajax in Celtic's penultimate pre-season friendly.

Here's what some of you said:

Liam: The same fans that got overly excited about us beating Newcastle will now be unhappy about this defeat. They're friendly matches and it's about fitness, but also these games told us very little that we don't know. Adam Idah is a disappointment and unless we do something about it we'll fall short in several games this season. At the back we know the issues.

Anthony: Often too much emphasis is put on pre-season results. It's clear the first team is working well and playing some good football but we lack serious depth and there are still questions to be asked up top and at centre-back. These next two weeks to start the league and transfer market will be huge in determining our season.

Lewis: The quicker Celtic get back to playing domestic football the better as they have shown cheap buys just can't do it. Let's not be fooled, this is Scottish football and it's bleak.

Ted: Hopefully they learn the lesson about keeping the ball and stop playing the ball in your own box.

Kevin: No concerns on the domestic front. The European stage is a different story. We need a reliable striker and we simply don't have one any more, the board's tight-fisted approach will, as usual, come back to bite them. No ambition spells failure!

Joe: This squad overall is fragile and I'm really concerned now about the lack of quality signings where we need to strengthen. 'Project' signings are not what we need right now, for the domestic challenge or Champions League qualification. Remember, we're not there yet.

Celtic need to show ambition in the transfer market, believes manager Brendan Rodgers. (Sun), external

Red tape denied forward Shin Yamada, 25, the possibility of a Celtic debut in Thursday's friendly defeat by Ajax in Italy. (Record), external

Read Friday's Scottish gossip

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Celtic can still take "lots of positives" out of their friendly with Ajax despite losing 5-1, says Brendan Rodgers, although the manager stressed it is "also a reminder of the work we still have to do".

The match in Italy was the semi-final of the Como Cup and Celtic will now face Asian Champions League winners Al-Ahli in a third-fourth play-off on Saturday.

"I don't think it was a 5-1 game," Rodgers told Celtic TV. "For the first 60 minutes of the game, we were very good and the third goal we gave away.

"But we had lots of really good moments - scored one but should have had more.

"The goal we scored was very, very good - then, I felt, in the last 30 minutes of the game, we gave the ball away far too easily and we lost out in too many duels."

Rodgers suggested that fatigue from pre-season training had played its part as the Dutch side rattled in three goals in the final 30 minutes.

"So we can see the players are working very hard and they're getting leggy in some of the games because we are pushing them in training," he said.

"Sometimes you get that and then the two goals right at the end are disappointing because they're shots from outside the box that we should do better with.

"But, overall, lots of positives from it but also a reminder of the work we still have to do."

Al-Ahli, instead of hosts Como, will now be Celtic's final pre-season opponents before they begin their defence of the Scottish title.

"They have quality players - players who are individually very good," Rodgers said of the Saudi Arabian side. "They spent a lot of money on top players, so that will be a very good game.

"That's why we came out. No matter how it turned out, we were going to get two really good games."

Celtic fans, are you concerned by the result with the Scottish Premiership kick-off just over a week away? Tell us your views.