Have Celtic already found their Tom Rogic replacement in Ryan Christie?

Follow us on Google Discover

Ryan Christie will return to Celtic when his loan spell at Aberdeen expires – while the Scottish Premiership leaders could lose Tom Rogic.

Celtic might have made the decision to bring Ryan Christie back to Parkhead at the perfect time.

According to The Express, manager Brendan Rodgers has been so impressed by the 23-year-old’s performances on loan at Aberdeen for the last 14 months that Celtic are set to offer him a one-year contract extension and give him the chance to prove that he can make the grade in the champions’ squad.

And, at the same time, Celtic are unsure where Tom Rogic will be playing his football in the near future. The Australian is out of contract in a year’s time and has already rejected one offer of an improved deal. The Daily Record claims that negotiations are still at a standstill.

If no new deal is agreed, Celtic could find themselves in a position where they have to sell Rogic in the summer to avoid losing him for a free 12 months later.

But even if that worse case scenario does come to pass, at least Rodgers can call upon Christie – one of the few players contracted to Celtic who shares Rogic’s ability to change a tight game in an instant.

He has seven goals and 13 assists in all competitions for Aberdeen this season, combining vision and pinpoint delivery with an improving goal return in the final third. Rogic, by comparison, has just five goals and eight assists. If needed, Christie would slot straight into the Aussie’s favoured number ten role.

So, if Christie can prove himself at Celtic, the prospect of Rogic’s exit might be a little less scary.