Celtic

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Celtic have added former Hearts coach Ross Grant to Martin O'Neill's coaching staff for the upcoming campaign.

Having already confirmed the return of Shaun Maloney and Mark Fotheringham to O'Neill's backroom team, the club say Grant will have a particular focus on set piece analysis and coaching.

The lifelong Celtic fan joins the Scottish champions from last season's title rivals Hearts where he was an important part of their coaching team as they finished second in the top flight.

Manager Martin O'Neill told club media: "I am really pleased to welcome Ross to our backroom staff, I know he is a highly rated coach and look forward to working with him."

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Celtic face transfer competition for £6m-rated Borussia Dortmund winger Cole Campbell, with newly-promoted Bundesliga side Elversberg interested in the 20-year-old. (Glasgow Times), external

Celtic have set a club record selling price for midfielder Arne Engels, with Roma now linked with the Belgian. (Football Italia via The National), external

Turkish clubs have submitted offers to Kelechi Iheanacho now that the option to extend his Celtic stay has expired. (AllNigeriaSoccer.com), external

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Celtic remain keen on Zambia midfielder Miguel Chaiwa and would consider a £5m bid for the 22-year-old but are unwilling to meet the reported £7m price tag set by Hibernian. (Football Insider), external

Celtic are expected to submit a new offer for Sandefjord centre-half Zinedin Smajlovic after a £3.5m bid for the Bosnia-Herzegovina international was rejected. (Football Insider), external

The option for Celtic to sign Kelechi Iheanacho for another season has expired, with the striker training on his own in Nigeria. (Scottish Sun), external

Former striker Chris Sutton is frustrated by the lack of transfer activity at Celtic, saying "it's just a mess". (The Warm-up podcast), external

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Hayato Inamura has officially left Celtic to join Tokyo on a permanent basis.

The left-back joined Celtic for an undisclosed fee from Albirex Niigata last summer but only made one appearance, in a 3-0 win over Livingston, before returning to Japan on loan with Tokyo in January.

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Celtic pair Auston Trusty and Daizen Maeda were on target at the World Cup as USA and Japan look forward to the round of 32.

Centre-half Trusty scored his first international goal when he fired the co-hosts in front against Turkey after just two minutes, but the eliminated Turks restored some pride, scoring in stoppage time to win 3-2.

Trusty, who started at left-back in Los Angeles, was carried off after going over on his ankle late in the game, but, with the USA having used all of their substitutes, was able to return.

USA, who won their two previous matches, will meet Bosnia-Herzegovina next, while Japan have set up a meeting with Brazil after finishing runners-up in Group F.

Maeda finished off a sweeping move on 55 minutes to give Japan a 1-0 lead over Sweden in Dallas.

However, the Swedes, featuring Celtic's Benjamin Nygren as a late replacement, levelled through Anthony Elanga to make sure of their progress as a third-placed team on four points.

Sweden are now scheduled to play the winners of Group I, either France or Norway.

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Celtic have opened talks to re-sign Marcelo Saracchi, but the 28-year-old left-back does not want another loan and the deal depends on the Scottish champions matching Boca Juniors' £1.3m asking price. (Josh McCafferty on X), external

Former defender Charlie Mulgrew is concerned by the lack of transfer activity at Celtic and reckons the champions need at least six new signings. (Scottish Sun), external

Celtic have submitted an improved offer for Zinedin Smajlovic worth £3.9m plus £1.7m in bonuses, but Sandefjord are under no pressure to sell amid rival interest from Rangers, Olympiacos, Hull City, Fenerbahçe, Toulouse, Feyenoord and Lyon in the 22-year-old centre-back. (Rudy Galetti on X), external

Hibernian have told potential suitors that they have no interest in selling Miguel Chaiwa this summer, despite the 22-year-old Zambia midfielder being consistently linked with Celtic and a host of English clubs. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Elias Filet joined La Louviere from Aaurau instead of Celtic as the Scottish champions did not follow up a video call with his representatives quick enough, with the 24-year-old striker keen to find a new club before the start of pre-season training. (Celts Are Here), external

Go Ahead Eagles general manager Jan Willem van Dop has confirmed Celtic have not made any contact this summer over Jakob Breum, despite continued links to the 22-year-old Danish attacker. (The National), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Gavin Strachan has left the Celtic to join the coaching staff at West Bromwich Albion.

Strachan, 47, will work under former Scotland midfielder James Morrison as a first-team coach at the English Championship club after six years in a similar role at Celtic Park.

Prior to joining the Scottish champions he served as assistant manager at Doncaster Rovers and Peterborough United.

"I have only really known Gavin for the past six months, but his contribution was vital to our success and of course I wish him very well for the future," said Celtic manager Martin O'Neill.

Celtic have yet to confirm O'Neill's backroom staff for next season after Shaun Maloney and Stephen McManus stepped up from their club roles and Mark Fotheringham joined on a temporary basis last season.

Morrison has backed Strachan to "bring fresh ideas" to West Brom, saying: "Having a new pair of eyes from somebody with Gavin's experience will help us massively."

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Japan forward Daizen Maeda says he wants "to continue doing my best in Scotland" as he admits to feeling the love from Celtic fans.

There has been speculation about the 28-year-old's future with the Scottish champions after his form tailed off at the start of last season after a big-money transfer reportedly fell through on deadline day.

But he was transformed at the end of the season, scoring in six consecutive matches, including a decisive second in the 3-1 win over Hearts that secured the league title and one in their Scottish Cup final win over Dunfermline Athletic.

That helped secure his place in Japan's squad for the World Cup finals, where he started their 2-2 draw with the Netherlands before being an unused substitute in the 4-0 defeat of Tunisia.

As he prepares for Friday's final Group F game against Sweden, Maeda was asked what he had learned in his four-and-a-half years playing football in Scotland.

"That, if you do your best, the supporters will feel it, and they'll want to root for you," he said.

"So I want to continue doing my best in Scotland."

Told that a female member of Scotland's back-room staff had said "tell him I love him", Maeda responded: "Getting people to love and accept you, not just in Japan but in foreign countries like Scotland too, is not easy.

"So it makes me so happy that your friend said that."

Marcelo Saracchi's agent says Celtic have not made contact over a permanent move after the left-back's loan from Boca Juniors, but other clubs, including one from Scotland, have an interest in the 28-year-old. (Celts Are Here), external

Celtic are facing competition to land Bosnia & Herzegovina midfielder Ivan Basic, with Eintracht Frankfurt and Elche interested in the £2m-rated Astana 24-year-old. (Scottish Sun), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Celtic and Olympiacos have had bids of £3.5m for centre-back Zinedin Smajlovic rejected by Sandefjord, who want closer to £4.3m for the 22-year-old. (Gazzetta.gr via Record), external

Meanwhile, Celtic are set to intensify talks with Boca Juniors over a permanent deal for Marcelo Saracchi after the 28-year-old left-back was told by head coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena he is not in his plans after his loan to the Scottish champions. (Record), external

Reported Celtic transfer target Soufiane El-Faouzi is poised to sign a new contract with Schalke until 2030 that will hand the 23-year-old midfielder an annual salary of nearly £1m. (Bild via Record), external

Go Ahead Eagles technical director Marc van Hintum says they will not stand in the way of Jakob Breum, for whom Celtic bid unsuccessfully in January, leaving if they receive a good offer for the 22-year-old £4m-rated attacking midfielder. (Glasgow Times), external

Celtic will welcome back a squad of around 21 for initial pre-season training on Friday with a clutch of players at the World Cup. (Record), external

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Celtic winger Sebastian Tounekti started Tunisia's 4-0 defeat by Japan in World Cup Group F but club-mate Daizen Maeda did not feature for the victors at Estadio Monterrey.

Tounekti, 23, played 64 minutes in Guadalupe as Tunisia sustained a second straight loss that ended their hopes of progress.

Maeda, 28, was an unused substitute for Japan, who joined the Netherlands on four points. The Dutch lead the group with a better goals scored tally.

Tunisia finish their campaign against the Netherlands on Friday (00:00 BST), when Japan taken on Sweden.

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Celtic could make a move for £2m-rated 24-year-old Qarabag striker Camilo Duran. (Sun), external

And Celtic are continuing to keep tabs on Go Ahead Eagles midfielder Jakob Breum, the 22-year-old who is valued at £4.4m and the subject of interest from both Sunderland and Fulham. (Football Insider), external

Meanwhile, Celtic midfielder Arne Engels will decide his future before the 22-year-old returns to pre-season training, with Roma joining Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest in expressing interest in the Belgian. (Voetbalkrant), external

Former Celtic striker Kenny Miller is poised to become Maccabi Tel Aviv head coach permanently after leading his side to an Israeli Cup final victory over Hapoel Beer Sheva as caretaker after Ronny Deila left. (Glasgow Times), external

Sunday's Scottish gossip

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Celtic midfielder Benjamin Nygren thought he had combined with former Parkhead centre-half Gustaf Lagerbielke to bring Sweden back into their World Cup group game against the Netherlands only to be thwarted by the offside flag in a 5-1 thrashing in Houston.

The Dutch were ahead thanks to two goals from Sunderland striker Brian Brobbey when Nygren floated in a free-kick for Lagerbielke, now with Braga, to head home just before half-time.

But it was ruled out and Liverpool winger Cody Gakpo scored twice after the break before substitute Anthony Elanga, the Newcastle United winger, pulled one back for the Swedes shortly after Nygren was substituted.

West Ham United winger Crysencio Summerville restored the four-goal advantage as Sweden fell short of the point that would have probably been enough to secure a place in the knock-out stage.

The Swedes had opened by thrashing Tunisia by the same scoreline and racked up 20 attempts on goal, nine of them on target, against the Dutch.

However, head coach Graham Potter said they would learn from the experience as they prepare for their final Group F game against Japan.

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"Celtic just don't look like a well-run club just now."

That claim comes from former Rangers player Andy Halliday, but does he have a point?

Nine days on from Martin O'Neill's appointment as permanent manager, his backroom staff is yet to be confirmed, with Shaun Maloney and Mark Fotheringham reportedly having been offered pay cuts to stay on.

And that's before O'Neill begins rebuilding the squad he dragged to a league and Scottish Cup double last season.

Speaking on BBC Sportsound, Halliday said: "I question why it took so long to appoint Martin O'Neill.

"When you saw the three candidates - O'Neill, Robbie Keane and Craig Bellamy - I just thought straight away he was the outstanding candidate.

"And then when the club appointed O'Neill, for Shaun Maloney and Mark Fotheringham not be named alongside him was really strange.

"Over the past four or five transfer windows for Celtic that have been heavily criticised, a big part of that has been how long it takes to actually do business. It comes to the last week of the window and they're potentially haggling over over-paying for a player, or it's a loan signing.

"That's exactly what happened in January and last summer. They had 18 months to replace Kyogo [Furuhashi] and didn't do it. They signed Kelechi Iheanacho a day after the window closed.

"Appointing a manager that seemed a no-brainer, that's taken a while. They can't continue that into their summer recruitment like they've done in previous seasons."

Halliday, who retired this summer after two-and-a-half years with Motherwell, expects O'Neill to improve Celtic and believes Hearts will find it difficult to replicate last season's title challenge in the new campaign.

The Tynecastle club have lost manager Derek McInnes and striker Lawrence Shankland to Rangers.

"I think it's almost impossible for Celtic to be as bad as they were last season. It's remarkable O'Neill managed to win the league with Celtic given the state of play on the pitch, the injuries they had, the friction between board and fans," he said.

"Rangers will improve under Derek McInnes and I think there will be question marks over how much Hearts can improve given what's happened so far."

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Celtic turned down a £25m bid from Nottingham Forest in January for 22-year-old Belgium midfielder Arne Engels but are open to offers, with Crystal Palace and Borussia Dortmund also interested. (Football Insider), external

Saturday's gossip

We asked for your views on champions Celtic's Scottish Premiership fixtures, including starting on the evening of Monday, 3 August against visitors Dundee.

Here are some of your replies:

Ray: Unfurling the flag on Monday evening is ridiculous. In my view, the champions of any league should always play first.

Eddie: Due to the Commonwealth cycling event being on the same day the season should be delayed a week to allow the champions to unfurl the flag at 3.00pm as is the tradition.

Tam: I'm not too bothered about it being on a Monday night, I just don't understand why the champions don't kick off the new season. Did they not used to?

Tom: As usual whatever disadvantage the SPFL and SFA can create for Celtic , you can be sure they will do so... ridiculous. Schedules should be made in conjunction with the major football club in the league, not treated as an afterthought to apparently everything else.

Edward: Is this another snub to Celtic fans/the board, dragging their heels on Martin O'Neill's on the backroom staff and on-field talent like Iheanacho and Oxlade-Chamberlain being left unaware of their futures? Now on a Monday night at 7:30 pm, Celtic fans are being asked to turn up for the unfurling of a league flag that, through unity, the team managed to get over the line. Are the board simply without any emotional intelligence or are they card carrying members of the 'Prawn Sandwich Brigade'?

Martin: Typically thoughtful scheduling from the SPFL, making it even more difficult for Irish fans to enjoy the occasion.

Kelechi Iheanacho, who is waiting to see if Celtic will trigger a contract extension, was offered to Vasco da Gama, but the Brazilian club did not find the Nigeria striker appealing. (Atencao Vascainos via Sun), external

Plymouth Argyle are not planning on selling any of their top players, including 24-year-old Celtic-linked striker Lorent Tolaj, despite forecasting operating losses of £10.6m for the 2025-26 season. (Plymouth Herald), external

Reports that former Celtic midfielder Efrain Juarez was in the mix to be Martin O'Neill's assistant with the Scottish champions proved premature when the 38-year-old was named the new head coach of Hungarian champions ETO Gyori. (National - subscription required), external

Friday's Scottish gossip

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A new season brings new drama and an opportunity for city rivalries to renew once again.

Despite finishing in the bottom half of the table, both Dundee clubs successfully avoided the drop and will play at least three more derbies in this season's Premiership.

Last term they contested four derbies, United won two, Dundee won one and the other was a draw.

The Dundee pair are the first of the three rivals to meet this term as United host Steven Pressley's side at Tannadice on 22 August. There's a new year meeting at Dens Park on 2 January before another match at Tannadice on 13 March.

On 2 September, it's the turn of Hibernian and Hearts to go head-to-head in the first Edinburgh derby of the season.

Hearts won three out of four Edinburgh derbies last term, including the dramatic post-split game at Easter Road where Hibs, having gone a goal in front early on, found themselves reduced to nine men for almost a full half.

It's Hearts' turn to host on 26 December before another Easter Road meeting in the final pre-split game on 10 April.

The first Glasgow derby of the new campaign is on 20 September at Parkhead. The sides met six times across all competitions last term - Celtic won three, including both the cup matches, while Rangers won one and the other two ended in a draw.

The pair meet at Ibrox on 2 January before returning to Parkhead on 27 February.

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Celtic will unfurl the Scottish Premiership flag on a Monday night this year as they begin their league title defence at home to Dundee on Monday 3 August at 19:30 BST.

Led by Martin O'Neill for another year, the Glasgow club's first away game of the season is the following Sunday, they travel to face Kilmarnock on 9 August at 13:30.

They will meet rivals Rangers for the first time in the 2026/27 campaign on Sunday 20 September at Parkhead. That kicks off at midday.

The Parkhead club end their pre-split campaign away to Dundee on 10 April at 15:00.

See all of Celtic's fixtures here.

Celtic fans, how do you feel about the first game being on a Monday night? How much are you looking forward to the new season? What do you make of the fixtures? Let us know your thoughts here.