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Daily Record
25 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Benjamin Nygren Ajax clue accelerates Celtic transfer need as Adam Idah 'reality' made crystal clear
Brendan Rodgers is desperate to add to his champions and Charlie Mulgrew has backed call for wingers and another striker Benjamin Nygren's position against Ajax caught Charlie Mulgrew off guard as he admitted Celtic need TWO wingers if that is the role he will play under Brendan Rodgers. The Hoops boss has been vocal once more in his need to add reinforcements with fans desperate for key additions. The Premiership gets up and running this coming weekend while a huge Champions League two-legged play-off showdown is on the horizon as Celtic bid to dine at Europe's top table once again. Nygren has been one of the summer additions to date alongside Kieran Tierney, Ross Doohan, Shin Yamada, Hayato Inamura and Callum Osmand. The Sweden attacker was used in a No8 role rather than wide during the Como Cup and with a lack of depth in the winger position, Mulgrew understands why Yang has to remain at the club - despite interest - and they must add more reinforcements. Speaking on Go Radio, Mulgrew explained: "I said last week they need a winger. "After playing Ajax you seen Nygren playing as a kind of No8 midfielder. So you are thinking is that where he is going to play? So then you would think they need two wingers. "So I can understand why they wouldn't let Yang go. You can't let a winger go when you've not got any in the building or wingers ready to start and make an impact. "If Nygren is going to play as a No8 in the midfield area - I thought he came as a winger - then you need another two wingers. "So you need to keep a hold of Yang until you get replacements." Adam Idah has received the backing of the former Celtic stopper to hit the ground running this year but has told him he must improve key aspects of his game. He admits the reality of him being the main man weekly is something that only Rodgers and his staff will know and reckons pressure will come from the top due to his high price tag. Shin Yamada has arrived and looked lively against Al Ahli. He netted the winning penalty and had a goal ruled out for offside but as a 25-year-old, he won't be a development player and will play some role. But Mulgrew reckons another striker has to come through the door between now and the window slamming shut. He said: "He's [Yamada] a bit old for a development player so you would imagine he would come in and play some sort of role. "I didn't realise he was that old [25]. So he needs to come in and make a sort of impact. Maybe off the bench at the moment. "I have said it before - £9million for Adam Idah. "He will be the main striker for me this year. Then get another to back him up and see where they go from there." A caller then put the question about how much time you give the Republic of Ireland international. He continued: "I think Idah's hold up play needs a lot of improvement. "The reality is, I don't know how long they give him and how well he does in pre-season. "But you'd think they will give him the start of the season to see what he does. There is a lot of things to his game he needs to improve on. "The reality is when a club spend £9million on a striker, there is pressure from the board and people to play him. "But that only does last so long. Like you say, who knows? Only Brendan Rodgers and the staff in there would know."
Scottish Sun
25 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Celtic's potential Champions League play-off opponents revealed as familiar foes could lie in wait
IT'S three weeks until Celtic begin their quest for Champions League qualification. And the picture of the side standing between them and the riches of Europe's premier competition is starting to become a little clearer. Advertisement 3 Celtic got to the knockout phase play-off of the Champions League last season Credit: Getty 3 Basel and Brazilian midfielder Metinho could be one of their potential opponents Credit: Alamy 3 Scotland international Max Johnston plays for Sturm Graz who could face the Hoops Credit: Willie Vass Unlike Rangers, Celtic are in the Champions path of the draw and because of the Scottish co-efficient, they are entered into the Champions League play-off round, meaning it's a straight one-off tie to guarantee qualification. They'll find out on Monday whom they could potentially face as the draw is made for the play-off round. They are seeded so they've been kept apart from Bodo/Glimt. The Norwegian champions reached the semi-finals of last season's Europa League before losing to eventual winners Tottenham. Advertisement Danish champions Copenhagen, Serbian title winners Red Star Belgrade and Hungarian champs Ferencvaros have also been avoided. Although, there is no guarantee these clubs will be in the play-off round with games still to play. Brendan Rodgers' side could face one of FIVE opponents in the play-off round, with two sides already in the draw and three others battling to get there. Celtic could face Basel, captained by former Liverpool star Xherdan Shaqiri. Advertisement Another face familiar to Hoops fans will be striker Albian Ajeti, who left the club in 2023 after an unsuccessful spell, while Rangers lost out in the race to sign their Brazilian midfielder Metinho this summer. The Swiss champions are unseeded and have confirmed their place in the draw. Some Hoops fans may remember their Champions League dreams were ended by Basel in August 2002, but they would go on to become Uefa Cup finalists that season with defeat to Porto in the final in Seville. Another club already in the hat are Austrian Bundesliga champions Sturm Graz. Advertisement Scotland international Max Johnston plays for them. If they are drawn together, it would be the first competitive fixture between the pair. So Basel and Sturm Graz are guaranteed to be in the play-off round, but there are three other places still up for grabs. Three potential opponents are: Israeli outfit Maccabi Tel Aviv, Slovakian side Slovan Bratislava and Qarabag from Azerbaijan but are all in second round qualifying action. Maccabi Tel Aviv secured a 1-1 draw with Cypriot side Pafos last Tuesday. Substitute Elad Madmon netting a 90+10 equaliser in Cyprus. Advertisement Major Mikey Moore Rangers loan doubts & 'strange situation' at Celtic + transfer news Go Ballistic Should they emerge victorious in Israel on Wednesday, they would face the winners of Hamrun Spartans (Malta) v Dynamo Kyiv. The Ukrainians are 3-0 up from the first leg so look likely to get the job done. Therefore, in the third round qualifier, it's looking like Maccabi Tel Aviv v Dynamo Kyiv to fill one of the slots in the play-off round. Two places to go, and Slovan Bratislava are the next possible opponents and they will be familiar to Celtic fans after the Hoops thumped them 5-1 at Celtic Park on matchday one of the Champions League last season. Advertisement Brendan Rodgers' side have been linked with the star striker David Strelec, who played against them last season. Bratislava look in a strong position to qualify for the third round after a 4-0 home win over Bosnian side Zrinjski Mostar in the first leg. Should they get through as expected, they'll come up against the winners of Finnish side KuPS and Kairat Almaty in the third round, with KuPS taking a 2-0 lead over to Kazakhstan for the second leg. Therefore, Bratislava are in the driving seat and likely to face the winner of KuPS and Kairat for a place in the play-off round. Advertisement The final place in the pot could go to Qarabag. The Azerbaijani side are in a commanding position of their tie, with a 3-0 lead against Irish side Shelbourne, heading into the second leg in Baku on Wednesday. If Qarabag can complete the job at home on Wednesday, they'll face either Shkendija or FCSB in the third round qualifier. North Macedonia outfit Shkendija have a 1-0 lead to take with them to Romania for the second leg on Wednesday. Advertisement The third round qualifier looks like Qarabag against either Shkendija or FCSB, with the winner of that tie going into the play-off round as potential opponents for Celtic. Celtic's potential CL play-off opponents Two teams confirmed that could face Celtic are Basel and Sturm Graz. There are three slots left to fill for the play-off round, with teams currently in Champions League qualifiers. Place 1 - teams involved: Maccabi Tel Aviv, Dynamo Kyiv, Pafos, Hamrun Second round qualifiers as it stands: Dynamo Kyiv v Hamrun (3-0 on agg) Maccabi Tel Aviv v Pafos (1-1 on agg) Third round qualifers Hamrun/Dynamo Kyiv vs Pafos/Maccabi Tel Aviv The winner of this tie will go into the play-off round Place 2 teams involved: Slovan Bratislava, Kairat Almaty, KuPS, Zrinjski Mostar Second round qualifiers as it stands: Kairat Almaty v KuPS (0-2 on agg) Zrinjski Mostar v Slovan Bratislava (0-4 on agg) Third round qualifiers KuPS/Kairat Almaty vs Slovan Bratislava/Zrinjski Mostar The winner of this tie will go into the play-off round. Place 3 teams involved: Qarabag, FCSB, Shkendija, Shelbourne Second round qualifiers as it stands: FCSB v Shkendija (0-1 on agg) Qarabag v Shelbourne (3-0 on agg) Third round qualifiers: Shkendija/FCSB vs Shelbourne/Qarabag The winner of this tie goes into the play-off round. Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
Scotsman
an hour ago
- Scotsman
Aberdeen to use Scottish Cup triumph to try and overcome Hearts hoodoo as defender discusses race for third
Aberdeen defender Mats Knoester is confident his side can break their eight-year wait for a win away at Tynecastle. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Aberdeen last left Tynecastle with a win in 2017 after a 2-1 victory and neither side have been able to inflict an away defeat to each other since that match. However, Dons defender and Scottish Cup winner Mats Knoester is confident his side can overcome their rivals as they face each other on the opening day of the Scottish Premiership season. The Jambos head into the match on the back of a perfect Premier Sports Cup group stage while Jimmy Thelin's side have not been in competitive action since beating Celtic at Hampden at the end of May. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad On the prospect of facing Hearts, the 26-year-old said, 'They're a good team, a big team as well. I think it's going to be an exciting game. It's not going to be an easy game away, but I think it's going to be interesting to see. Always the first game in the season is interesting to see how the teams are after the pre-season.' Knoester also reflected on the cup final victory and how breaking their hoodoo against Celtic can help them in this game. Aberdeen's record against the Hoops, especially at Hampden Park, has not been one they look back on fondly. 'We're aware that it's a tough game,' the Dutch centre back said. 'Away at Hearts, but I also think the past doesn't really matter. And if I can go back to Celtic at Hampden, we don't have a really good record against Celtic and then you win the game. So, in football, I don't think you should go too much back to the past and then look forward.' Aberdeen and Hearts to battle for third spot There is also the matter of the battle for third coming into this season, as both sides are tipped to challenge each other for the position in the league table, with former Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes now in charge of Hearts. The Jambos' Edinburgh rivals Hibs, who finished third last season, are also likely to have a say in that challenge. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The former Heracles Almelo and Ferencváros defender admitted this will be the case in the coming season, saying: 'Yeah, if we look a bit further, I think they're also one of the competitors. Of course, as Aberdeen, you're one of the bigger teams, and Hearts is that as well. So, in that way, I think we should compete with each other but I prefer to just go week by week. I do that with myself and also with the team and their goals.' Knoester also knows that Jimmy Thelin's side will have a target on their backs after their famous cup win but he is confident they won't see it as a burden, adding: Yeah, it can be. [It's] no problem. If they want to see it like that, it's fine.' Your next Hearts read: Hearts signing reveals New York moment that showed him size of Jambos as he's impressed by 'unbelievable' aces
