Will Kieran Tierney’s return be just the start of another busy summer at Celtic?
On Tuesday, the Parkhead side officially confirmed the left-back’s return to Glasgow, six years after he departed for £25m, which remains a joint-club record sale.
Despite this, the Scottish Premiership champions are looking to bolster their full-back options further, possibly anticipating a departure, so could Brendan Rodgers’ side be close to another arrival?
Celtic chasing another defender after Tierney
Announced to supporters earlier this week, Tierney arrived back at Celtic with a point to prove. He was sporting a beaming smile and we’re sure Rodgers was too. Speaking about the deal, the Northern Irishman said:
“We are delighted to welcome Kieran back to Celtic. He is such a talented, high-quality player and he will be a massive addition to our squad. Kieran has always had Celtic in his blood and he is excited to be coming back to the place he loves.”
That said, he’s not the only left-back who could arrive this summer.
According to a report by journalist Ben Jacobs, Celtic are ‘interested’ in a move to sign defender Josh Doig.
Still only 23 years old, the full-back made his senior debut at Hibernian in 2020, accumulating 78 appearances for Hibs, before moving to Italy in 2022.
He spent two seasons at Hellas Verona, featuring 16 times in Serie A and then 29 times in Serie B following I Gialloblù’s relegation, before joining Sassuolo for a reported £5m in January 2024, a key figure as I Neroverdi won the second-tier title in Italy this season; only four of his teammate racked up more league minutes.
So now, could the youngster, who also made his senior Scotland debut against Liechtenstein at Rheinpark Stadion on Monday, be heading and joining the Premiership champions?
How Josh Doig compares to Greg Taylor
According to reports in Greece, PAOK have submitted an official offer to Greg Taylor, while Dinamo Zagreb have previously been noted as interested in securing the left-back’s signature.
Taylor joined Celtic from Kilmarnock in 2019, signed as Tierney’s direct replacement, and has made 216 appearances for the club, but is out of contract at the end of this month, and it seems extremely unlikely that he’ll sign an extension.
Callum McFadden of Breaking the Lines praises Taylor’s ‘consistency’, labelling him a ‘mainstay’ in the Celtic back-line during his six seasons at the club and, while Samuel Hutchinson of Total Football Analysis is impressed by his ‘reliability’, both in terms of performance and availability, they understand why the arrival of Tierney is viewed as an upgrade.
Nevertheless, Tierney has struggled for fitness throughout the entirety of his career, so a competent back-up in the form of Doig is required.
Jack Ross, who handed Doig his senior debut at Hibs, praised his “excellent” performances back in 2020. Since then, his game has reached a whole new level since making the move to Italy, scoring three goals and posting seven assists. That isn’t bad going for a defender, particularly as he only ever scored once for Hibs.
Mark Atkinson of the Scotsman believes that his ‘pace, physique and athleticism’ are his primary attributes, making him very much like Tierney in that regard, but also like Cristiano Ronaldo.
Yes, that was the view of former Hibs teammate Lewis Stevenson, who said in 2022: “He hasthe potential to go to the top level. He is 6 foot 3, fast, strong. Even just looking at him with his top off – without meaning to sound creepy – he looks like Ronaldo, with that kind of physique. He just is an athlete.”
So, let’s analyse how he compares to Taylor this season.
Doig vs Taylor 2024/25 comparison | ||
|---|---|---|
Statistics | Doig | Taylor |
Appearances | 31 | 43 |
Minutes | 2,338 | 3,141 |
Pass completion % | 77.4% | 83.5% |
Interceptions per 90 | 0.6 | 0.6 |
Tackles per 90 | 0.6 | 1.3 |
Clearances per 90 | 2 | 1.9 |
Ball recoveries | 87 | 21 |
% of dribblers tackled | 41.4% | 77.8% |
% of ground duels won | 52% | 58.3% |
% of aerial duels won | 55.6% | 43.3% |
Stats via Transfermarkt, FBref & Sofascore | ||
As the table shows, Taylor does come out on top for a few metrics, but Doig’s statistics are comparable across the board, notably racking up more clearances and ball recoveries, as well as winning a higher percentage of aerial duels, suggesting he’d shore up the defence.
Also, according to Global Football Rankings, the youngster was doing his work at a higher level, with Serie B rated the 19th strongest league in the world, while the Scottish Premiership is down at 43rd.
Still only 23 years old, there is plenty of time for Doig to get better and, given Tierney’s injury record, should he arrive at Parkhead, there would be plenty of minutes available to him, if he chooses to swap green and black stripes for green and white hoops.
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