Unfortunately for Jeffrey Schlupp the announcement of his signing was simply a vehicle for Celtic fans to take out their frustration and anger over a shambolic January transfer window.
The former Crystal Palace man has been welcomed by most fans, he does provide cover for some glaring holes in the squad but not even the boards biggest apologists can spin this window as one that strengthened the Celtic squad.
In the rawest of numbers two players involved in the win over YB Bern have been sold while Jota has returned to Celtic alongside Schlupp.
In terms of first team numbers nothing has changed but having sold 50% of the strikers used in the SPFL Premiership at a time when Plan B has a two match UEFA ban it is obvious that joined up thinking isn’t in Michael Nicholson’s skill-set.
The Celtic CEO likes to hide away from the spotlight, whether he likes it or not he is now the target for angry fans alongside his mentor, the Chairman that groomed him in his own image.
The Transfer Window just finished really should have been straightforward, after the disastrous Mark Lawwell Production of Summer 2023 Brendan Rodgers imposed himself, said no to projects as Nicolas Kuhn, Adam Idah, Kasper Schmeichel, Auston Trusty, Arne Engels and Luke McCowan transformed Celtic.
More of the same please, Michael.
Players over 22 for starters, with a bit of experience and certainly ambition. Generally you are looking at £6m plus which was previously nose bleed territory for the Celtic board who preferred crossing their fingers that a £2-3m punts might somehow come good.
🆕 #WelcomeJeffrey 🟢⚪
🇬🇭 Celtic Football Club have signed Crystal Palace player Jeffrey Schlupp on loan until the end of the season, subject to international clearance ✍️
Welcome to #CelticFC, Jeffrey! 🍀
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) February 3, 2025
Rodgers made it known that a winger was a priority, Yang Hyun-jun and Luis Palma were as sub-standard as the rest of the summer 2023 signings, no-one seriously anticipated the squad being weakened but incredibly that is what happened.
The warning signs started flashing as fans returned from the 1-0 Champions League win over YB Bern. Celebrations and expectations were trampled into the ground with the clear message that another £10m in the bank was more valued than Kyogo Furuhashi on the team sheet.
Some fans assumed that this had only been agreed because a replacement was lined up, that is what competent clubs do after all.
The January Transfer Window is supposedly notoriously difficult but Rennes were able to breeze into the Celtic dressing room and take away the managers first choice striker with at least three games still to be played in the Champions League.
Kyogo’s exit was played out over a number of days, no replacement was on the horizon, the official announcement was twinned with the welcome signing of Jota but it left Celtic a striker short.
Mathias Kvistgaarden, Kelechi Iheanach, David Strelec and even Danny Ings and Jamie Vardy were linked with Celtic but Nicholson was unable to complete the signing of any of them.
At Motherwell on Sunday Rodgers sent out a last despairing plea to his CEO to do his job, the Herald reported the Celtic boss saying:
My feeling was always once Kyogo was gone, was to have someone else to come in. I don’t know exactly where it’s at at this moment, but I’d be hopeful that we can do that.
But the demand is still there to improve the squad. We have to make sure that there’s constant improvement. That’s been clear. I don’t need to fall out with anyone over it.
Nicholson chuckled and ignored it, looking to his mentor and Chairman for approval.
To his credit the mess at left-back has been covered by the signing of Schlupp, that deal rectifies the mess created by waiting on Kieran Tierney, letting Greg Taylor run down his contract and take Alex Valle on loan with Barcelona having a January recall option.
Since becoming CEO in September 2021 Nicholson has only appeared once in front of the media, as a sideshow when Rodgers returned as manager in June 2023.
The manager’s expectations haven’t been delivered, he is left on his own to make the best of what he has to work with.
Now more than halfway through his three year contract negotiations over an extended contract for a man with a 90% domestic success rate and who delivers record-breaking turnover are bound to be demanding.
If Dermot Desmond wants to retain Rodgers beyond 2026 surely he has to be thinking of a serious shake up of his Executive team if he is to avoid the challenging task of recruiting a manager to succeed Rodgers, last time around it spectacularly unravelled 18 months later.
P Lawwell, February 2023:
The Board recognises the inherent inefficiencies of holding excess cash, and, in conjunction with other cash commitments, the importance of investing in strengthening the team to deliver football success. The Board shares the frustrations of the supporters regarding the less than anticipated activity in the recent transfer window.
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What a disgrace! This is the only addition? We sold our best striker and didn’t replace him! £46 is coming out of our account on Wednesdays for a game you have already written off! The squad is considerably weaker! Fuck Nicholson and Lawwell!
— Totò (@rinna_salv79514) February 3, 2025
Not replacing Kyogo… criminal🤦🏻♂️ pic.twitter.com/YtUURMcS7i
— TheHoops🍀🏴🇮🇹 (@67_Celtic_1888) February 3, 2025
— Harvey Mackie (@HarveyMackie4) February 3, 2025
— A J N 🏴🇮🇪🇵🇸 (@AJN1967) February 3, 2025
Our board and I’ll put it in Brendans words are weak as https://t.co/cUGnI67bu0 deserve better we have put our heart soul and money into this club every season and again we are treated 2nd class.Brendan and the players deserve better but the board serve up same over n over again
— bornacelt (@bornacelt) February 3, 2025
Club treating our first UCL play off game in years as a friendly while thousands of fans pay hard earned money for tickets. No excuse for not replacing Kyogo. Had months to find a replacement. Manager, team and fans badly let down.
— Anne Marie (@fresian1975) February 4, 2025
Coming out of the Window weaker is a stunning level of incompetence that should cost Nicholson his job. We won’t accept there were no attainable options, not with our resources. BR will be rightly furious with the failure.
— BC (@stromunde) February 4, 2025
Welcome Jeffrey you will get our full support 💚 Celtic Board you are beyond a disgrace allowing Kyogo to leave without a replacement says it all
— Wally Doug 🇵🇸 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@darrenjdouglas) February 3, 2025
Welcome to celtic.
We leave this window weaker.
— Joseph Sloan 🇮🇪 (@sloanybhoy7) February 3, 2025
Fans and manager robbed again sell our striker and don’t replace shambles support the team sack the board
— kate dunbar (@katedunbar61) February 4, 2025
To the CEO/Celtic Board
How can Celtic be a serious club in European football when we don’t sign European level players?
£60m CL money
£4m profit in the transfer window
£70m in reserves
Over £130m in the bank & more to come after the Bayern.What the hell is your strategy?
— 3rdFrame (@The3rdFrame) February 3, 2025
— KAH😎 (@stairwaytohe11) February 3, 2025
Where is the replacement striker? why haven’t we spent some of the tens of millions in the bank on players? This is the clubs money not the PLCs the board must be held to account for this joke of a transfer window. P.S welcome to Celtic Jeffrey.
— DavyH (@Pilgrim_73) February 3, 2025
Just a reminder:@CelticFC let Kyogo go after knowing for 6 months he wanted to leave the club, said they had a plan and we have not signed a back up striker. What happens if Idah gets injured at the weekend, who plays up front for the Bayern game?
We let Valle leave the club,…
— Jota on the wing 7️⃣🍀 (@JotaCSC1888) February 3, 2025
SHOCKING WINDOW!
Over £60 million banked from the Champions League
Our best striker is sold for £10m
We bring in a half fit Jota for £8m
So £2m made in this window.Bayern in 2 weeks and this is height of our ambition?
Shameful for a club of Celtic’s size and stature.
— 3rdFrame (@The3rdFrame) February 3, 2025
Have reactivated my Twitter account specifically to tell you what a shambles the club made of this transfer window. What club with pretensions to any ambition whatever sells their main striker mid-season and replaces him with…nobody? Fucking garbage.
— Stef McDef (@StefMcDef) February 3, 2025
The board shafting the fans as per usual. £100m in the bank only being used to line directors pockets, no interest investing in the squad.
— Antoninus, Singer Of Songs (@Superhans88) February 3, 2025
Terrible transfer window. Utterly unacceptable to have Taylor as our #1 left back for the rest of the season, in addition to not replacing Kyogo with an ACTUAL STRIKER.
— Michael McDonald (@Mikey_Bhoy_1993) February 3, 2025