The January transfer window has been officially open for business for a week and Celtic are yet to make their first signing of the month to bolster their squad.
It has been a terrific and almost faultless campaign for the Hoops to date, as they have only lost two games across all competitions and have already won a trophy.
The Scottish giants won the League Cup, beating Rangers on penalties at Hampden Park last month, and are on course to qualify for the knockout stages of the Europa League.
Celtic have, however, still been linked with players who could come in to bolster their options in the squad ahead of the second half of the season, as Brendan Rodgers looks to build the best team possible.
Burnley captain Josh Brownhill, Brondby centre-forward Mathias Kvistgaarden, and Norway U21 international Sondre Orjasaeter are just a few of the players to have been linked with a possible move to Parkhead in the January transfer window so far.
Another star who could be on his way to Glasgow this month is former Celtic star Kieran Tierney, who has found himself out of favour at Arsenal.
Why Kieran Tierney would be a good signing
It has been reported that the Hoops are hoping to sign the Scotland international on loan from the Gunners in January, before signing him on a permanent deal at the end of his contract with the Premier League giants in the summer.
Tierney has only made one appearance in all competitions for Arsenal so far this season and could revive his career by returning to the place where it all started, at Parkhead.
The Scottish left-back began his career with Celtic and was the first-choice in his position throughout Rodgers’ first spell with the club, between 2016 and 2019.
As you can see in the graphic above, Tierney racked up 170 appearances for the Hoops in all competitions and provided a fantastic threat from the left-back position, with 45 goal contributions in that time.
This suggests that the 27-year-old star could come in to provide a strong attacking presence down the left flank for the Hoops in the second half of the season, or in the 2025/26 campaign if they have to wait until the summer to land his services.
However, the elephant in the room is that Tierney has suffered from plenty of injury issues over the years. Since the start of the 2018/19 campaign, the full-back has missed at least 17 matches through injury every single season.
This means that bringing the experienced ace in could be a bit of a risk for Celtic as there is no guarantee that he will remain fit enough to be a regular starter.
With this in mind, there is another former Hoops star who could come in as an even bigger signing for the club this month, and that is Portuguese forward Jota.
Jota's current transfer situation
The exciting dynamo joined Rennes on a permanent switch from Al Ittihad in the summer transfer window and is already been touted with an exit from the Ligue 1 side.
Besiktas are reportedly preparing an offer to take the winger on loan until the end of the season to provide him with regular football in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.
Jota has only started three of his nine Ligue 1 appearances for Rennes this term so far, which shows that he has found game time hard to come by in France.
Whilst Celtic have not been directly linked with a move for the attacker, Ross McCormack recently said that there has been “talk” of Jota and Tierney both returning to Parkhead on the Open Goal podcast.
Whether or not a deal is viable for the Scottish Premiership champions or if Rodgers would want to sign the winger, who only played for Ange Postecoglou in Glasgow, remains to be seen, however.
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If there is a chance for Celtic to bring the talented forward back to Paradise, whether that is on loan or on a permanent basis, the club should push to get a deal over the line because he could be an even bigger signing than Tierney this month.
Why Celtic should sign Jota
The 25-year-old star is a winger who has proven his ability to provide goals and assists on a regular basis in Scottish football, having caught the eye in his two years with the club under Postecoglou.
Goals win games and the Portuguese whiz is a player who can consistently score and create goals for the Hoops to help them win games week-in-week-out. In fact, Joao Tralhao, who coached Jota at Benfica, once stated that the attacker took Celtic to “another level” and described him as a “truly amazing” talent.
In his first season with the Scottish giants, the talented gem racked up ten goals and ten assists in 25 starts for the club in the Premiership, which shows that he provided a huge threat at the top end of the pitch from a left wing position.
Jota followed that up with an even better return in front of goal in the 2022/23 Premiership campaign for Celtic, which earned him his big move to Al Ittihad in the summer of 2023.
Appearances
33
Goals
11
Assists
11
Big chances created
13
Key passes per game
1.9
As you can see in the table above, Jota contributed with a staggering 22 direct goal contributions in 33 appearances in the Scottish top-flight, taking his total to 32 goals and assists in two league seasons with the Hoops.
This suggests that he could return to Celtic to be a consistent match-winner for Rodgers if he can get back to his best, whereas Tierney would be a solid defensive option who could sometimes contribute at the top end of the pitch.
He has also only missed 24 matches through injury since the start of the 2019/20 campaign and this suggests that there is a greater chance that the forward would be available week-in-week-out in comparison to the Scottish left-back.
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Therefore, Celtic could land an even bigger signing than Tierney by bringing Jota back to Parkhead, because he could be a huge threat in the final third and reliable from a fitness perspective.