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Did Celtic drop the ball on Rangers signing Emerson Hyndman?

Brighton’s Anthony Knockaert and Fulham’s Emerson Hyndman in action (Reuters)
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Have Celtic made a mistake not moving for Emerson Hyndman?

Rangers this week confirmed the signing of talented American midfielder Emerson Hyndman on loan from Bournemouth until the end of the season.

Hyndman was a player coveted by their rivals Celtic last summer, with Daily Record reporting their interest in May 2016.

The midfielder joined Bournemouth instead, but has left the Cherries temporarily in search of regular football.

It may say something about Celtic’s upwards direction right now that they are not interested in loan deals, and are focused on bringing players in on a permanent basis.

Yet the chance to ‘test run’ a player they tried to sign in the summer is an option they should not have passed up, and now he has signed with their rivals instead.

Hyndman is a player with outstanding potential, and Rangers have put themselves in pole position to sign him permanently if he decides his future lies away from Bournemouth.

Having signed on loan for Rangers, there is next to no chance of Hyndman electing now to play for Celtic in the future.

It is up to Gers boss Mark Warburton to allow the USA youngster to develop his potential, and if he can, then he will really show that Celtic dropped the ball by not maintaining their interest.

With Celtic top of the league and better equipped financially, they could have beaten Rangers to his signing if they pulled out all the stops, and on loan there really was no downside to bringing him in.