da pinnacle： [ad_pod ]
da dobrowin： Celtic are reportedly in the chase to sign Red Star Belgrade defender Srdan Babic, but is he really the standard the Bhoys should be looking to set?
What’s the story?
Celtic could be set to undergo a bit of a defensive overhaul this summer, as first team players like Jack Hendry, Mikael Lustig and Kristoffer Ajer have massively underperformed at times this season while Dedryck Boyata is yet to sign a new deal.
Well, according to CNN Turk, Serbian Under-21 international centre back Babic is on their wish-list for the summer, but they will face competition from Besiktas, Nice and Feyenoord.
The towering 22 year-old has scored three times in 14 league appearances in Belgrade this season, but his performances in the Champions League show he would be a sideways signing for Celtic.
Sideways move
Will all due respect to the rest of the teams involved, Celtic have dominated the Scottish Premier League with relative ease for most of the last decade, and they are well on their way to both the “treble treble” and a remarkable ten league titles in a row.
However, they have not been able to muster the type of European effort that Ajax showed last week is fully possible, only ever managing to take a big scalp in the group stages in recent years.
For the Bhoys to truly progress and be a serious contender in the knockout stages, they need signings that are better than what they have now, not just about the same level.
Babic has performed well playing at the back for a team who are seven points clear in their league with a goal difference of +54, but his European performances were woeful.
Pl>ymaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals he often received racist abuse after North London Derbies – Check out the video below…
He played three times in the Champion League this season, conceding six times against PSG, four times against Liverpool and three against Napoli. In case you weren’t keeping count, that’s an average of over four goals conceded per game.
Babic may be a young defender with bags of potential, and if the Bhoys are signing him to develop and use as depth for the time being then it may be a worthy move.
However, if this is the type of move the club are plotting to jump that final hurdle and give fans what they really want – European success – then they are in for a rude awakening next season.