Don Hutchison has compared Camilo Duran to Dutch forward Donyell Malen - and predicted that Celtic will reap rich rewards this season if he continues to play for them at striker.
Duran, the Columbian who joined the Scottish champions in a £5.5m transfer from Qarabag in Azerbaijan back in July, has failed to score in his last five outings for the Parkhead club.
The 24-year-old, who has been on target six times in the 2026/27 campaign, has been deployed out wide and through the middle by manager Martin O’Neill with varying degrees of success.
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Celtic fans were unhappy with the contribution of the summer signing, and the vast majority of his team mates, in the Premier Sports Cup and William Hill Premiership defeats to Rangers as well as the Europa League loss to Ferencvaros
But former Scotland attacking midfielder Hutchison is an admirer of the player and feels he will contribute more in the coming months if he is allowed to continue at striker – just like Netherlands internationalist Malen has since joining Roma this summer.
“It is a difficult one because Camilo is in between positions,” he said at a promotional event for betTOM. “He is not quite an out-and-out winger, but he has not yet shown the goalscoring output of a traditional No 9.
“He reminds me a little of Donyell Malen when he was at Aston Villa. People were unsure whether he was a wide player or a centre-forward. At Roma, Gian Piero Gasperini has told him he is a No 9 and he has been on fire.
“I would put Durán and Kasper Høgh in direct competition for the centre-forward position or find a way to play them together in attack. I think the two of them could work as a strike partnership.”
Høgh promised to justify the club record £11m fee it took to lure him to Celtic when he scored a hat-trick against Kilmarnock in a Premiership match at Rugby Park back in August.
However, the Danish internationalist, who had a fortnight out injured after the Champions League play-off collapse to LASK, has now gone seven games without finding the target and fans of the Parkhead club are beginning to question if he is good enough to lead the line for them.
But Hutchison feels the 25-year-old just needs to adapt to the unique demands of Scottish football and representing the Glasgow club and has urged supporters to be patient with the 6ft 1in front man.
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“He needs a little time,” he said. “He scored early on and has already shown he can find the net, but Glasgow brings a different pressure and a lot of scrutiny.
“I watched him several times while he was at Bodø/Glimt and he always looked like a natural finisher to me. He is professional, he looks after himself and he knows where the goal is.
“At Celtic, he will get chances. He may need to adjust to a different system and learn to become more of an 18-yard box striker, to stay between the width of the penalty area, occupy defenders and be ready for chances rather than constantly coming short. But I like him. He has good potential and could be a long-term solution for Celtic.”
