Ange Postecoglou is relaxed about the imminent departure of Giorgos Giakoumakis from Celtic, saying that a plan is in place to replace anyone who leaves, but also that his squad is strong enough to cope with any departures.
The Scottish champions have agreed a fee in the region of £3m with J-League side Urawa Red Diamonds for Giakoumakis, whose game-time has been curtailed this season due to the form of Kyogo, though MLS side Atalanta United are also considering a bid.
Postecoglou says he will be looking to bring in one more player regardless of who may leave during the January window, but he isn’t ‘on tenterhooks’ about the future of any of his players.
“As I’ve said all along, we’re in a position now where we’ve done some good business so far, and the three boys that have come in have adapted really well, and I think they will contribute over the course of the season,” Postecoglou said.
“We’re in a position where we aren’t really being forced into doing anything, and as a coach, it’s the position I wanted us to be in.
“For me, it would have been a lot trickier if guys had already left and we were having to bring guys in at the last minute, so for me it is just about concentrating now on the task at hand and dealing with what is before me.
“If people exit, then we have plans in place already that will counter that, but having brought in three players already we are in a position where we aren’t on tenterhooks about who is coming in or who is leaving.
“Our plans are in place, and the plan is to bring in at least one more, so we’re still working on that and if anything else is needing to be done then we are in a good position to do it.”
Of the three players Postecoglou has brought in this month, only right-back Alistair Johnston has featured so far, and the Celtic manager is assessing when he might introduce fellow new arrivals Yuki Kobayashi and Tomoki Iwata.
“It depends,” he said. “Tomoki probably not yet, he only really joined us in the last week and he has missed a bit.
“Yuki is close, he came to us having started a pre-season camp, so he’s had a good three or four weeks of training.
“He obviously lacks some game-time, so we’ve got to find that game-time for him and I think you will find we will probably give him some of that through the next couple of fixtures with the quick turnaround from midweek to Saturday.
“He’s definitely close, but for Tomoki, it will probably be another week or so before he’s in a condition to be given an opportunity.”
