Having Schlupp and Kieran Tierney, the Arsenal and Scotland defender who will return to his spiritual home after the current season ends, in the same squad will put the Glasgow club in a very strong position indeed going into the 2025/26 campaign.
The former impressed greatly, not for the first time since he moved to this country back at the start of February, during the William Hill Premiership win over Hearts in the East End on Saturday.
He had little difficulty containing man-of-the-moment James Wilson and right wing-back Adam Forrester down his flank, made several powerful runs upfield during the course of the 90 minutes and was unfortunate not to net. It was typical of his displays in a green and white jersey.
Schlupp and his manager Brendan Rodgers were quizzed by the assembled media about the prospect of him joining on a full-time basis following the match and both men appeared open to that possibility. Celtic fans will be jubilant if that comes to pass.
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But as he talked, Rodgers let slip that he suspects Greg Taylor, who is out of contract in the summer and who has not accepted any of the offers which Celtic have made to him, to depart in May.
“We know we’ll need to have someone else if Greg moves on,” he said. “My idea was always to keep Greg and it still is. But I’ve been in this position so many times and I can read situations.
“It’s probably more likely now that Greg will move on than stay, which is a big shame for me because I love him as a person and I love his game because it’s suited to how we work.
“It’s not financial. I respect his position because he wants to feel he’ll play every week. Whoever is in next year with Kieran will still play a lot of games. But my feeling is that Greg may well move on.”
It was not, given that Taylor hasn’t featured since the loss to Hibernian at Easter Road last month, a great surprise. He has looked destined to leave and seek a fresh challenge for some time now. Confirmation of that was hardly bombshell news.
(Image: Craig Williamson - SNS Group) Nor was the revelation lamented to any great degree. The former Kilmarnock man has firmly established himself as a first team regular and won 10 major honours in the Scottish game since completing his £1m move to Celtic back in 2019. He has, however, not been without his detractors among his club’s support.
He has often been accused, rightly or wrongly, of being suspect defensively and of being out of his depth at the highest level in Europe. Calls for Celtic to upgrade in the specialist position have been made regularly during the past four-and-a-half years.
Those who have made those appeals are happy that Tierney has been landed and will be also delighted if Schlupp, the Ghanian internationalist who lifted the Premier League with Leicester City back in 2016, is tied up.
They may well come to mourn the departure of Taylor, a consistent, committed, technically gifted, intelligent, underrated and greatly underappreciated footballer who has been instrumental to the success which Neil Lennon, Ange Postecoglou and Rodgers have overseen, in time.
The latter made reference to how adept the Greenock-born defender is at moving inside and adding to his midfield during his post-match tribute at the weekend. “He [Schlupp] is still getting to grips with being on the inside and going on the outside,” he said. “He’s had a few months at it while Greg has had a few years at it and been superb.”
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So much so, that Diego Laxalt, Alexandro Bernabei and Alex Valle, who were all tipped to supplant him as first choice left back when they joined, proved unable to get in the side. They moved on after failing to displace Taylor.
The 14-times capped 27-year-old may stand just 5ft 7in in his studs – his lack of height resulted in him being released by Rangers as a kid and has led to persistent claims that he does not possess the physicality required to deal with top class continental opposition – but he is a ferocious competitor.
He is certainly undaunted by the pressure which there is on him to perform every time he takes to the field. In fact, he positively welcomes it. Far more expensive signings have struggled to cope with the demands of supporters.
(Image: Ross MacDonald - SNS Group) He has often been at his very best in games against Rangers. A clip of him saying “shut your hole fat boy” to Colombian striker Alfredo Morelos during a derby game at Ibrox back in the January of 2023 went viral on social media and endeared him enormously to fans. T-shirts were even printed with the soundbite emblazoned across it.
He did not take kindly to Todd Cantwell's "trash talking" in the Scottish Cup final at Hampden last season and used his exchanges with the controversial English playmaker to fire him up during the second half. Victory in that match was especially sweet for him.
Schlupp has loved his time north of the border and has proved to be a shrewd acquisition. That he got the nod for the Champions League last 16 match against Bayern Munich in Germany last month told a story. But it is one thing moving up here for a few months to get game time, it is quite another to relocate permanently.
Will he be prepared to do that? Will Celtic want to take him? Will the two parties be able to agree terms? There are many imponderables. But one thing is certain. Whoever takes over from Greg Taylor at left-back next season, even Kieran Tierney, will be doing very well to acquit himself as well as his predecessor at home and abroad.
Helping the Premiership leaders to wrap up a fourth consecutive Scottish title win, lift the Scottish Cup and complete a ninth domestic treble will be a fitting way for a fine servant to bow out at Parkhead.