Celtic signed Olivier Ntcham from Manchester City in the summer transfer window.
Ntcham has joined Scottish Premiership giants Celtic from Premier League powerhouse Manchester City in the summer transfer window.
According to BBC Sport, the Bhoys had to pay the Citizens a transfer fee of around £4.5 million in order to secure the services of the 21-year-old midfielder.
Although the youngster failed to break into the City first team, the France Under-21 international played well and made encouraging progress during his loan spell at Italian club Genoa over the past two seasons.
Ntcham made his debut for Celtic at the weekend, as he featured in a pre-season friendly match against French outfit Lyon at Celtic Park.
Although the Hoops lost 4-0, the performance of the former City prospect was very impressive, leading Celtic manager Rodgers to sing his praises.
“He has the qualities to play at the very highest level,” Rodgers told Celtic’s official website about Ntcham. “His range of passing makes the game look very simple – he can play it short and long, and he can dribble and shoot. He has everything to be a top level No.8.”
“With Olivier, I’ve been looking for this type of player for about a year,” Rodgers told The Scottish Sun. “One of the key things I recognised when I came in was I needed speed and power in the team.
“We brought in Moussa Dembele and we got Scott Sinclair and then I felt in midfield, especially at the highest level, it is very important to have a high level of technique with that speed and power.
“With Olivier being 21, like Moussa, he has that hunger to succeed. He has great qualities and this is a perfect environment for him to develop.”
Meanwhile, Rodgers has praised Linfield goalkeeper Roy Carroll for his performance against Celtic last week.
The Scottish Premiership giants got the better of the NIFL Premiership club 2-0 away from home at Windsor Park in Belfast in the first leg of the Champions League second qualifying round last Friday.
“Roy Carroll was outstanding and made some brilliant saves,” Rodgers told The Glasgow Evening Times. “It could have been five or six on another day.”
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