Celtic have let two players leave the club and Michael Gannon feels the Bhoys have walked themselves on a “tight rope”.
Liel Abada and Alexandro Bernabei both left the club this week. Brendan Rodgers was deeply sad with the departure of Abada who moved to the MLS with Charlotte FC.
Abada was enjoying a blossoming career at Celtic Park but the Israeli winger left Glasgow following months of high-profile pro-Palestinian protests by a section of the Celtic fans.
Rodgers hailed him as a “fantastic” player and suggested that Abada was willing to commit to his future at Parkhead in the summer. However, it is “desperately sad” for the player to look for a career elsewhere of no fault of his own.
Interestingly, Argentine left-back, Bernabei has also left the club. The 23-year-old joined the Bhoys in 2022 on a five-year deal, but he was allowed to leave in less than two years.
He has failed to make an impact and joins Brazillian club Internacional on loan, hours before the deadline day. The Scottish Sun has described the move as a “shock”.
Gannon feels that Abada should have gone on loan elsewhere until the matter settles down, and adds that Celtic made a wrong decision to allow the Argentine defender to leave the club which leaves them short of options at the back.
“Big time. Abada should have gone on loan until things calmed down. Celtic had to keep Bernabei after failing to land a left-back in January. They have walked themselves on to a tight rope,” wrote Gannon for The Daily Record (page 65, 9 March).
Celtic are short of options
The departure of Abada has hurt Rodgers badly. He is an exciting attacking player and Rodgers was looking to develop him so that he can be a long-term asset for the club.
However, the situation was becoming toxic and unbearable for him, and it was really unfortunate that he had to leave the club.
The decision to let Bernabei go is a strange one. While he wasn’t playing regularly, Celtic should have kept him as they don’t have enough options in the left-back areas.
Greg Taylor remains the only recognized senior option and the transfer decision could come back to haunt the Bhoys. Liam Scales is capable of playing on left flank as cover, but he is a natural full-back.
Celtic will look to bounce back to winning ways when they face Livingston in the Scottish FA Cup on Sunday at Celtic Park.
