Celtic defender Stephen Welsh was playing admirably until being subbed off in December’s Glasgow derby victory. The centre-half was injured at the end of the first half, but the Hoops went on to secure the victory, much to his relief.
Welsh returned to the fray last month against Buckie Thistle and he did come off the bench in Saturday’s draw with Aberdeen, replacing Maik Nawrocki moments after he luckily avoided a sending-off. The Scotland youth internationalist, however, may not have been playing for the Hoops at all had things gone differently in January.
There were a few exits last month as much of the deadwood in the Celtic squad was cleared, but Welsh stayed put. Indeed, every centre-half in the team remained at the club due to the vast injury issues Brendan Rodgers has faced in said position this campaign.
Gustaf Lagerbielke did seem set for an exit, although the interest in Welsh went somewhat under the radar. In prior windows, there has been chatter of an exit for the academy graduate.
This January, there was interest yet again. That is according to Sky Sports journalist Anthony Joseph: “Stephen Welsh, I understand Celtic very quickly knocked back a loan with an option to buy bid from a team in Germany”, he said (The Celtic Exchange Podcast).
“There’s something that the European leagues in Italy, France and Germany they like about Stephen Welsh and there’s a lot that Celtic like about him as well.
“So they’ve kept them they’ve signed him up on a new deal and they’re in a strong position. But I think we could see more interest in Welsh in the summer.”
When fit, Rodgers has five centre-backs to pick from. Usually, managers will have four first-team options in their team at a stretch but due to the injury troubles faced, keeping five for the second half of the season is understandable.
The latest transfer interest in Welsh doesn’t come as much of a surprise and in a few months, it will inevitably re-surface.
