It's your Saturday morning round up on all things Parkhead
09:42, 11 Oct 2025
Jahmai Simpson-Pusey during a Celtic training session
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Jahmai Simpson-Pusey during a Celtic training session
Fans had plenty to say about Celtic's summer recruitment with the board coming under major fire.
The transfer dealings went right to the wire and beyond the summer window slamming shut - with supporters showing their discontent towards the Hoops hierarchy after also suffering a Champions League shock exit to Kairat Almaty.
One man who came into Parkhead was defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey - but he's virtually been invisible to the Hoops faithful.
However, his name came as a bit of surprise as part of the Celtic B starting team to face East Fife KDM Evolution Trophy.
The youngsters lost out 5-3 in the end to the Scottish League One outfit - but it rare minutes of action for the Man City loanee.
On the topic of summer signings, one man who has made an impression is Kelechi Iheanacho.
He was freed from Sevilla to allow him to complete a move to Glasgow's east end after Adam Idah was sold for £7million to Swansea City.
The 29-year-old is still getting up to full speed but has found the net three times in six appearances to date.
Hoops hero Chris Sutton reckons the move to Scotland could be the exact type of transfer to light the fire under him again - but in his Record Sport column he has named three areas he'd like to see a bit more from the striker.
He said: "Kelechi Iheanacho is an interesting one too. You’d expect him to get stronger the more he builds match fitness.
"He’s made a decent start with his goal in Belgrade and the penalties against Kilmarnock and Motherwell.
"You can see he’s a finisher, and his link up play is good. I think he could offer more in terms of his movement though.
"Okay, he’s just come in and he hadn’t played a lot of football in recent months. He’s arrived on the back of a disappointing year or so at Sevilla and Middlesbrough.
"The good thing about him is he seems to have bought into the club.
"It could be that this is the kind of move he needed to light a fire under him again, because we all know he’s got the talent.
"I’d just like to see a bit more in terms of mobility, getting into the box and getting across his man.
"It might come the more they play because it’s all about forming connections with your teammates.
"When I played alongside Henrik Larsson, Alan Thompson, Stiliyan Petrov and so on, you didn’t have to think about what they were going to do.
"You just knew. It became almost like instinct. You knew exactly where you had to be to get the ball or where they would be to get it from you.
"Celtic don’t have that right now. They are having to think about everything, almost trying to work out rather than anticipate movements because they are not yet second nature."
Celtic's Kelechi Iheanacho celebrates as he scores from the penalty spot
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Celtic's Kelechi Iheanacho celebrates as he scores from the penalty spot
Meanwhile, Marcelo Saracchi insists he's loving playing for Celtic after he captained Uruguay on his international recall.
He joined on loan from Boca Juniors just ahead of the deadline and has impressed so far.
His form earned him a recall, after over a year out, by former Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa, who also handed him the armband in a 1-0 friendly win over the Dominican Republic in a match played in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.
And Saracchi believes he was made skipper because he is now getting game time at Celtic.
He said: "Playing for the national team is a beautiful thing and being captain is a huge honour.
"At Celtic, it's a completely different kind of football than Argentinian football, which is more competitive. Scottish football is more similar to English football.
"My goal has always been to get playing time. I've been absent from the national team, so my aim has always been to play as much as possible at Celtic because we have a World Cup coming up and I would very much like to be there.
"Wearing the captain's armband is a source of pride and also a huge responsibility. It's something amazing that will remain in the memory of my career as something I was able to achieve.
"Marcelo Bielsa and his coaching staff constantly send us analysis of our matches at the clubs and they have guidelines on what kind of full-backs we are, what they want us to repeat and what we need to improve in the national team."
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Marcelo Saracchi in action for Celtic
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Marcelo Saracchi in action for Celtic
Elsewhere, Sebastian Tounekti sparked fears after missing Tunisia's World Cup qualifier.
However, Al Araby reported his absence was down to a thigh injury but tests showed everything was fine and he was just in need of a few rest days to recover.