Kelvin Wilson says Celtic have been craving a top-quality centre-back ever since Virgil van Dijk left the club.
And in new £6million man Cameron Carter-Vickers, he believes they’ve found their man.
The big American international signed on a permanent deal from Spurs on Friday and committed himself to four years
at Parkhead.
Carter-Vickers was a revelation for Ange Postecoglou’s side on loan last season.
He was a key player in the Hoops’ charge towards a Premiership and League Cup double.
And by tying Carter-Vickers up for the long-term, Wilson feels he can be their best defender since Van Dijk.
The Dutchman left Celtic for Southampton in 2015 before moving on to Liverpool and becoming the best centre-half in the world. Wilson, who spent two years in Glasgow, was impressed by Carter-Vickers’ displays last term.
He said: “Cam was arguably Celtic’s best defender last season.
“He was never going to have a problem getting a move this summer, whether it was to Celtic or elsewhere.
“But if you leave Celtic, you have to make sure it’s to a club that’s just as big, if not bigger – and that’s hard.
“I watched some games he played in last season, like the ones against Rangers and the League Cup Final.
“He was unbelievably good. He has such a presence because of the physical side to his game – but he can play as well. He’d have been a massive miss for Celtic if he hadn’t signed and he’d have been hard to replace.
“Since Van Dijk left, they’ve struggled a bit to get in quality centre-backs. But they’ve found one in Carter-Vickers and it’s great that they’ve managed to keep him at the club.”
Carter-Vickers could probably have earned more money by staying in England and Spurs wouldn’t have struggled to find a buyer.
But Wilson insists that unless he’d gone to one of the big Premier League outfits, he’d have been taking a step down from Parkhead.
The 36-year-old left Celtic for his boyhood club Nottingham Forest in 2013 and knew he’d never again play on a bigger stage.
He said: “There aren’t many clubs he could have gone to who could give him what Celtic will. That’s one million per cent true.
“Unless it had been a top-half Premier League club, he’d have been crazy to go anywhere other than Celtic, especially to the Championship in England.
“I did that and it wasn’t a regret because I came back to my club, Forest.
“On the flip side, looking at my career, I knew I wasn’t going to play for a bigger club than Celtic in the Championship.
“It’s even the case in the Premier League. Look at Gary Hooper, he left Celtic to go to Norwich and it wasn’t successful.
“Gary would be first to tell you that unless it’s a top Premier League club, you won’t get bigger than Celtic. Obviously financially it might have been better for him. But the money Celtic are paying isn’t rubbish – it’s still very good.
“Celtic are going straight into the Champions League next season so it was a no-brainer for him to stay there.”
Carter-Vickers was keen to hang around at Celtic after becoming a fans’ favourite last season.
He’d agreed personal terms with the club earlier this summer but had to wait until a £6million fee was agreed with Tottenham.
That might have prompted sides in England to try and steal a march on the Scottish champions. But Wilson has praised Carter-Vickers for making his mind up to join Celtic and sticking to his guns despite speculation over his future.
He was in a similar situation as a player at Preston North End when he was desperate to sign for Forest but the Deepdale club were trying to flog him to Leeds United.
Wilson said: “The player can influence a situation like that, to a certain degree.
“I had a stage in my career when I was almost being forced to sign for Leeds from Preston.
“I wanted to go to Forest instead. I held out, stood my ground and ended up getting my move.
“Some clubs might try to force the issue. They can try to push the player elsewhere for the financial gain of the club.
“But it was in Cameron’s heart that he really wanted to go to Celtic.
“He’s stayed strong and stuck to what he believes will be best for his career.]
“He clearly thought it was right for him to go to Celtic and he’s held out for what he wanted.
“That might have been a risk, of course. I took a massive gamble by what I did.
“Because if you end up staying at the club, like Carter-Vickers at Spurs for example, and they don’t play you – it might mean not playing for months before eventually trying to get a move in the January transfer window.
“But by then, clubs will say, ‘He hasn’t played in a long time’.
“Thankfully for Celtic, he’s made his mind up early and it’s worked out for him and Celtic.”
