I first noticed John Guidetti back in 2011 when he was at Feyenoord on loan, they were in Breda taking on NAC. He was a substitute and changed things when he came on, he actually turned the game around.

That year in Holland saw Guidetti score twenty goals in twenty-three Eredivisie appearances.

Unfortunately things haven’t gone to plan with his parent club Manchester City and his career stalled. Injury hampered his time at the Etihad and chances were always going to be slim with the forwards that City have in their pool.

But as soon as Celtic snapped him up in a loan deal this summer, I said that they had picked up a real gem who could be a star for them in the league (unfortunately he signed too late for the Europa League squad).

His performances this season in the Scottish Premiership have proven he is a striker that Celtic have missed since Gary Hooper left last year.

He has eleven goals in his career in Scotland so far this season.  Like fellow Swede and Celtic great Henrik Larsson, Guidetti is a prolific and instinctive goalscorer. He’s also capable of nice touches and pieces of skill that can remind you of Swedish captain/legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic. At twenty-two, he also has a cool head and is a fine set-piece taker.

So you can see why Celtic’s fans and their manager Ronny Deila want to try and keep John. Peter Lawwell has stated a few months ago that replacing strikers has been Celtic’s biggest recruitment problem in recent years. In Guidetti they have an extremely talented young forward who will score bagfuls a season in Scotland and should be able to contribute to enhancing their European credentials too.

But Celtic need to act fast as other big sides such as Marseille have taken note of his performances at Celtic Park this term.

A deal seems to be in place with Man City for a fee of around £3m but the player now needs to be convinced. I think just playing and scoring for Celtic will be a major plus for the ‘Hoops’. But wages could be a stumbling block depending on where the two parties are at the moment.

Why the rush?

Well as I’ve already stated other notable sides have been linked with the hitman. Plus his Man City contract is running out next summer and he’ll be able to talk with other clubs come January.

So getting a deal done now could be huge for Celtic. Keep him for two or three more seasons and then they’ll probably sell him on for double or treble the £3m price that they pay Man City for his services now. As long as he keeps proving himself and scores the all important goals.

Now reports in Scotland have also suggested that Celtic could be interested in Norwegian prodigy Martin Odegaard. The fifteen year old (will be sixteen next week) is a huge prospect and already has three senior international caps.

The links to Celtic started as soon as Ronny Deila became the Hoops boss. He was Odegaard’s manager at Strømsgodset and was the boss who gave him his debut in April.

Celtic being Celtic always operate a level beyond themselves. They love to be linked with world-class players and amazing prospects. It gives them a huge PR boost and placates the fans. Plus what business wouldn’t big themselves up?

So when you see quotes from Deila and Stefan Johansen about signing Odegaard, I’d take them with a pinch of salt. Look the player is training with Bayern Munich, Man United and Liverpool at the moment. He’s also had training sessions with Man Utd and Bayern last year too. He is destined for a big move to one of Europe’s biggest sides.

Now some might say, well he’ll get more game time at Parkhead. Well he’d actually be better off staying in Norway if he wants as many games as possible. Plus not many come through the youth teams and make it at Celtic these days.

Celtic could still be involved in Odegaard’s career if they keep it cute.

The young starlet could end up at Man City, as the English champs have strong links with Strømsgodset. If that were to happen then maybe Celtic, who have taken Guidetti and Jason Denayer on loan, could be first in line to take Odegaard on loan. Even if it’s not City but one of Europe’s other elite sides that snap up the teenager, Celtic and Ronny Deila could be seen as ideal guardians to loan him to and see him settle into a good level of football.

So in my opinion Celtic should sit tight and try and pick up Odegaard once the dust settles after his big transfer gets completed.

I’d love to see the Scottish champions keep their current Scandinavian star and hope they manage to get Odegaard at sometime in the near future too.

 

Posted on December 14th, 2014 by scott
Filed under: Article