Christopher Jullien is out until possibly November time, leaving Celtic with very few options for the rest of the season and in need of a game plan for the summer.
There has been a wide acceptance Kristoffer Ajer will leave the club this summer but can the Hoops afford to get rid of their star defender?
The Norwegian is coming into the final twelve months of his deal and has been looking to move since last summer.
There’s no way any money we get for Ajer will be enough to go out and find a worthy replacement and someone who can hit the ground running.
Depending on who the manager is this summer, there could be scope for some sort of compromise.
If I was Dominic McKay, I’d be looking to make a Stuart Armstrong type deal with the centre-back.
Stuart Armstrong wanted to move on from Celtic but the club and Brendan Rodgers asked him for one more season. The Scotland midfielder agreed and because he was entering the final 12 months of his deal, Armstrong signed a one-year extension with a pay rise so the bhoys could cash in the following summer.
Stuart moved to Southampton at the end of the double treble season for around £8m; the player got his move and Celtic got a sizeable fee.
We can use the same template to entice Ajer into staying one more year.
There’s an argument you shouldn’t keep a player at the club who wants away and we’ve seen the detrimental affect that can have on a team. But Ajer has continued to be an absolute professional and puts in energy zapping shifts again and again.
In my opinion, you make the bhoys defender one of the highest paid players at the club for one season and let him help integrate any news defenders while helping us win our title back.
Surely, it’s worth a shot?
What about giving him a bumper 4 year deal , he stays for next two seasons then he gets his move , still in his early 20s and we would get a big fee for him
If he doesn’t want to stay.
Punt him out the f uck ing door.