Things were supposed to be different this time.
Another new manager, another new era but the same old story for Celtic. A wholly unavoidable defeat to FC Midtjylland on Wednesday night means the Scottish giants have fallen at the qualification phase for the fourth year in a row, missing out on Champions League football yet again.
While their slumbering backline will receive its fair share of criticism, switching off twice as Midtjylland turned the tie around, Celtic really should have put the game to bed long before the Danes struck back to ensure Callum McGregor’s stunning opener counted for nothing.
Odsonne Edouard looked a pale imitation of his former self and, in truth, Celtic really should have scored far more than the two goals they managed over the 210 minutes.
Whether Mbaye Niang is the man to solve that particular problem is anyone’s guess. The former AC Milan and Watford forward has often struggled for consistency but has scored 14 and 15 goals in each of his last two full Ligue 1 campaigns at Rennes.
He boasts rapid pace, tactical flexibility and, when fit and focused, clinical finishing skills.
FootMercato reported earlier this week that the journeyman Niang had emerged as a target not just for Celtic but also a Nottingham Forest side who have endured their own problems in the final third recently.
The two-time European Champions scored just 37 goals in 46 league games last season after all.
According to Tuttomercatoweb, however, Niang has set his sights on a return to Italy. More specifically, a Venezia side who secured promotion back to the big league after nearly two decades away in May.
The report adds that, while there is still work to do, the 26-year-old Senegal international could be a Venezia player by the time Saturday rolls around.
After Celtic’s lack of ruthlessness cost them a place in the Champions League, Postecoglou looks set to miss out on a man who might have been the solution to his biggest problem.
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