Celtic could look to bolster their playing squad over the next couple of months after the summer transfer window officially opened for business recently.
The Hoops won the domestic double during the 2023/24 campaign – lifting the Scottish Premiership title and the SFA Cup – but still want to strengthen Brendan Rodgers‘ options across the park.
Celtic have been credited with interest in Bournemouth goalkeeper Mark Travers, Brondby striker Mathias Kvistgaarden, and Dundee star Luke McCowan, among others this summer.
Along with players who could come in and make an immediate impact in the first-team, the Premiership champions could add more young talent to the group.
Celtic’s interest in teenage starlet
According to FD, as relayed by Football Scotland, the Scottish giants are keeping tabs on 18-year-old central midfielder Pontus Dahbo ahead of a possible swoop for his services.
The report claims that Rodgers has sent Celtic scouts to watch the Hacken star in action this season, as the Bhoys view him as a potential future star for the club.
It states that the Swedish outfit are set to demand a fee within the region of £3.4m for their talented academy graduate, who has done enough on the pitch to attract interest from the Hoops.
However, it remains to be seen whether or not the Premiership side are prepared to pay that fee or if they will wait to pursue him in a future window.
If they can strike a deal for his services, though, then they could land the future heir to Callum McGregor‘s role in Rodgers’ midfield set-up at Parkhead.
Why Pontus Dahbo could be Callum McGregor 2.0
The 18-year-old is not a player who the Hoops would sign and expect to come in and immediately be a huge upgrade to their existing first-team squad.
He is in the early stages of his playing career and would arrive at Parkhead as a long-term project and, potentially, as someone who could go back out on loan to gain valuable experience.
As a left-footed central midfielder who likes to retain possession at an impressive rate whilst making an impact at the top end of the pitch,
Dahbo could develop into Rodgers’ next version of McGregor.
|
Stats |
Dahbo (Allsvenskan 2023) |
McGregor (Premiership 23/24) |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
20 |
35 |
|
Pass accuracy |
89% |
92% |
|
Opposition half pass accuracy |
85% |
90% |
|
Goals + assists |
5 |
8 |
|
Duel success rate |
60% |
54% |
|
Stats via Sofascore |
||
As you can see in the table above, the teenage talent showcased his talent in and out of possession in the Swedish top-flight during the 2023 campaign.
Like McGregor, Dahbo completes his passes, in general and in the opposition’s half, at a high rate and has the quality to chip in with goals and assists, whilst remaining strong out of possession by winning the majority of his battles.
The 18-year-old gem, who was hailed as a “skilled offensive” player by scout Philipp Hollenhorst, has also completed 89% of his attempted passes in the Allsvenskan this year.
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The Hoops are one of the teams keen on a deal for the impressive young winger.
There is no guarantee that he would be able to translate that form over to the Premiership but the talented prospect still has plenty of years left to develop and grow and could be a fantastic long-term project for Rodgers to work on.
