Celtic's Northern Irish coach Brendan Rodgers gestures during a press conference at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, on November 6, 2023, on the eve of their UEFA Champions League Group E football match against Club Atletico de Madrid. (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP) (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO/AFP via Getty Images)
According to reports, Mark Cooper joined Celtic’s revamped recruitment team.
After two brilliant transfer windows driven by Ange Postecoglou the profile of the squad was transformed but three windows overseen by Mark Lawwell reversed that process.
In the summer of 2022 Sead Haksabanovic, Alexandro Bernabei and Ben Siegrist were signed alongside loan deals for Mortiz Jenz and Oliver Abildgaard. None of those plaers made it into this season’s Champions League squad.
In January Adam Idah and Nicolas Kuhn were signed with both appearing to be brought in by Brendan Rodgers rather than from Lawwell and his Recruitment Team.
Other than a brief announcement over Lawwell’s departure there has been nothing officially from Celtic about their Recruitment plans but in the Daily Mail McGowan reveals:
Celtic, meanwhile, have hired former South American talent spotter Mark Cooper in a revamp of the club’s scouting set-up.
Head of player recruitment Mark Lawwell, son of Celtic chairman Peter, and chief scout Joe Dudgeon left the Parkhead club to ‘pursue new challenges’ in a clear-out of the recruitment department in March.
Previously based in South America, Cooper went on to work in MLS, but the Scot has now been lured back to Glasgow in a full-time role. Highly rated by manager Rodgers, Cooper has been set the task of improving the standard of first-team recruitment.
Targeting players aged between 19 and 23, with international experience and fitting certain financial criteria, Celtic’s hit rate came under scrutiny after a number of the club’s summer signings failed to hit the ground running at first-team level.
Of the dozen new captures brought in over the last two transfer windows, Nicolas Kuhn was the only starter in Saturday’s 3-0 win over Hearts.
Expected to strengthen in a number of key positions this summer, goalkeeper, the left side of defence, midfield and attack are priority areas and Cooper has already set to work on drawing up a list of players likely to make an impact.
As part of the backroom restructure, Celtic recently confirmed former B team coach Darren O’Dea as Professional Player Pathway Manager with the task of developing the progress of young players at Lennoxtown.
Since the turn of the year Celtic have sent Marco Tilio, Kwon Hyeok-kyu and Bernabei out on loan with all three recruited recently and on long term contracts. Siegrist and Yuki Kobayashi are also on long term deals without playing a minute of first team football this season.
The focus for Cooper will be to bring in players of the calibre of Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers but a significant clear out is also needed with the first team squad comfortably over 30 with doubts over whether Gus Lagerbielke and Maik Nawrocki have any future at the club.
