Let’s face it, Celtic need to sign defenders this summer.
The Hoops are 20 points behind newly-crowned Premiership champions Rangers and significantly, they have conceded 24 goals so far – 14 more than their Old Firm rivals on the blue half of the divide.
If Celtic are going to wrestle their Premiership title back next season under prospective new coach Eddie Howe, they need to concede far less goals.
And if one rumour is true, Howe, who is heavily linked with the manager’s job in Glasgow, has a brilliant first signing in mind.
According to The Scottish Sun, Celtic are keen on signing Steve Cook if Howe gets the job.
Now, Cook isn’t exactly Virgil van Dijk in terms of profile, but he is a 29-year-old central defender with 168 Premier League appearances under his belt and that experience could go a long way next term.
Better yet, the veteran powerhouse is available for free this summer due to his contract expiring with the Cherries.
You could argue that Shane Duffy was a similar age and had similar top-flight experience in England, which didn’t mean much in Scotland as it turned out – and that’s true.
But what’s also true is that Cook has spent years playing under Howe and the 43-year-old knows him extremely well, both as a man and as a player.
And if he thinks that the Bournemouth captain – who also has leadership qualities that the Lennoxtown club will badly need next term, due to Scott Brown’s exit – is the man to aid his success at Celtic, that sort of faith goes a long way.
The Bhoys will, of course, need a lot more than just Cook this summer, but getting him in for free might be a blinding start.
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