Chris Sutton admits he has concerns Celtic have been weakened by Ange Postecoglou’s transfer tinkering during the January window. The Hoops have snapped up Oh Hyeon-gyu to add to new arrivals Alistair Johnston, Tomoki Iwata and Yuki Kobayashi.
But Sutton fears allowing Josip Juranovic to move to Union Berlin and Giorgos Giakoumakis to go are major gambles that could backfire. Johnston has slotted into the side with minimal fuss while Kobayashi has impressed on run outs against St Mirren and Morton, with Iwata making his debut from the bench at the weekend.Oh completed his £2.5m move on Tuesday and could be in the squad to face Dundee United on Sunday.
But Parkhead hero Sutton – speaking on the Record Sport Celtic Podcast – said: “You have to ask yourself, will Celtic be stronger with Juranovic and Giakoumakis out the door? Johnston has come in and looked pretty steady, but will he be up to the level of Juranovic over a sustained period?
"The way Celtic use the inverted full backs under Postecoglou, I don't think he brings quite as much as Juranovic in an attacking sense just yet. In terms of Giakoumakis, I know he’s played second fiddle to Kyogo, but he almost guarantees goals every time he plays.
“With Oh coming in, it will be interesting to see how he fits in and it will be important he fits in quickly and hits the ground running. Giakoumakis wasn’t just about his goals, it was his physical presence, the way he holds the ball up. You look at his performances against Rangers in the big games.
“He always turned up. I think he will be a huge miss. Ange Postecoglou hasn’t got a lot wrong in the transfer market. There must be a reason for letting him go. Giakoumakis wanted out but he always looked a player who was highly motivated and he’ll be a loss.
“Most people would think he’s going for pretty ordinary money. I don’t doubt down the line Postecoglou will improve over time because the manager has done that with just about every player he's brought in.
"But sometimes it’s about the here and now. The league isn’t over and I think it’s a big gamble. Could this have not waited until the summer?”
Sutton has high hopes for new Bhoy Oh – but he sees the Korean international as a project rather than a ready made replacement for Giakoumakis, who is weighing up moves to MLS Atlanta United or Urawa Red Diamonds in Japan.
Frontman Oh narrowly missed out on a place at the World Cup when Spurs star Son Heung-min recovered from injury to nick his place in the Korea squad. But the 21-year-old £3m signing from Suwon Bluewings has a track record for goals in the K-League. Sutton said: “I hope Oh is a revelation but it does worry me, at a time the pitches are starting to roughen up and Celtic are not going to be able to play their free-flowing stuff all the time, they don’t have that other option.
“When Giakoumakis is on the pitch he does get opportunities and you’d back him to finish them. There have been many games where he’s been influential. Oh is a work in progress. Hopefully he’ll hit the ground running but he’s a development player who will have to play second fiddle to Kyogo.
“But if anything happens to Kyogo, then Giakoumakis was a sure thing, can we say the same about Oh? That’s not having a pop at Oh. It’s just that it’s all about winning titles in Scotland and it’s not over yet.
“There’s a lot of talk coming from across the city. You’d rather be in Celtic’s shoes but they don’t want to risk an opportunity to keep Rangers in their place.”
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