Martin O’Neill has admitted Celtic could head into the summer with a “top-heavy” squad and says he would look to create space for academy prospects.
The interim boss is fully focused on the title run-in and hasn’t had the luxury of integrating younger players into the first team.
But behind the scenes, the work has started.
O’Neill revealed he and assistant Mark Fotheringham watched the B team in action against Brentford at Barrowfield last week, in a game Celtic won 4-0.
And what he saw impressed.
He said: “In terms of getting other players into the football club, yes, we will have a top-heavy squad come the end of the season or come when people are reporting back. I did not realise how big it is.
“You know, players are out all over the place and I want, believe it or not, if I was here, I’d like to make room for younger players coming through.
“Myself and Fozzy [Mark Fotheringham] went to watch the B team. They played Brentford last Tuesday at Barrowfield and some of the younger lads, I know they’re not of the age at this minute, they are really impressive.
“So it is a balancing act of trying to be strong, still strong, and hopefully that these players can come through in the next couple of years.
“Because that would be lovely, that would be really nice to see young boys who’ve got the club at heart, who’ve maybe been in the academies here since they were about 12 or 13 to come through. And we’ve got one or two lads. It was an under-18s or 19s game against Brentford, but it was very impressive, both sides.
“So that was really good. I think we should have an eye on that, and not stifle young talent coming through, particularly here because Scottish football needs it.” [RecordSport]
Celtic’s squad depth has grown, but that can come at a cost, particularly when it blocks pathways for emerging talent.
While he remains non-committal on his own long-term future, O’Neill is already thinking structurally.
He hasn’t held talks over taking the job permanently, while there has been no indication of Celtic’s plan.
A few managers have been loosely linked with the role at Parkhead, but concrete interest is yet to emerge, with just five games to go until the squad breaks up for the summer.
O’Neill will pass on his assessment to whoever the next manager may be, and he very well might tell them that he’d trim the squad to create some opportunities and trust Celtic’s next generation.
