The January transfer window is still a number of months away from opening for business but Celtic have already been linked with a potential swoop for one of their former players.
It was recently reported that Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney has made securing a return to Parkhead a priority ahead of the second half of the season.
The outlet revealed that the Hoops are considering a move for the Scotland international, whilst the Gunners are prepared to allow him to leave on loan to secure a switch back to Glasgow.
Tierney left Celtic to sign for the Premier League giants for a fee of £25m in the summer of 2019 having enjoyed a wonderful career at the club.
Across a whopping 170 appearances, he won everything Scotland had to offer, including an impressive five Scottish Premiership titles.
The Bhoys had already signed Boli Bolingoli as his replacement, but as we all know by now, it didn’t go quite according to plan…
How much Celtic spent on Boli Bolingoli
The Scottish giants swooped to sign the Belgian defender for a reported fee of £3m on a £780k-per-season salary from Austrian side Rapid Vienna to take over from the academy graduate in the 2019/20 campaign.
He had produced two goals and two assists in 25 matches in the Bundesliga during the previous season, but had also lost 53% of his duels in the division.
Despite his struggles on the physical side of the game, Celtic decided to splash out a fee of £3m on the full-back, who stated that he wanted to “emulate” Tierney’s success at left-back for the Scottish Premiership side.
He made 28 appearances in all competitions during his first season at Parkhead and only played 14 times in the Premiership, providing two assists in the top flight, as a knee injury limited his involvement.
Unfortunately, Bolingoli was never able to kick on after his first season with the Scottish giants, after falling behind Greg Taylor in the pecking order, and that was thanks in no small part to a major error he made in 2020.
What happened to Boli Bolingoli
The £3m flop travelled to Spain prior to a clash with Kilmarnock at the start of the 2020/21 campaign and, due to quarantine rules at the time, should have resulted in him spending 14 days in isolation.
Instead, he kept his trip quiet and played in the game, after training with his teammates throughout the week, and Celtic had their subsequent two matches suspended after the truth came out.
Neil Lennon, the manager at the time, stated that he and the club were “bitterly” let down by the “selfish” full-back and that the Hoops were left “livid” by the situation.
July 2019
£2.9m
April 2020
£2m
May 2021
£1.8m
December 2021
£1.2m
November 2022
£752k
December 2023 – present
£418k
The dud was then sent out on loan to Basaksehir in Turkey a month later, where he played 18 games, and later returned to play two matches under Ange Postecoglou in the 2021/22 campaign, before joining UFA on loan.
Bolingoli then signed for KV Mechelen for an undisclosed fee in the summer of 2022, after his Transfermarkt value had already dropped by more than £2m, and he currently plays for Standard Liege at the age of 29 – valued at just £418k.
He was, ultimately, unable to emulate Tierney’s success at Celtic and let the team down with his behaviour in the summer of 2020, which is why the £3m fee and the £780k he earned in wages during his first year in Scotland was wasted.
More valuable than Engels: Celtic hit gold with star who's now worth £25m
Celtic hit the jackpot when they swooped to sign the forward under Ange Postecoglou.
ByDan EmeryOct 16, 2024