Who is Bosun Lawal? The Celtic man wanted by QPR, Derby County, and Portsmouth | OneFootball

Celtic loanee, Bosun Lawal, has been one of the bright points for Fleetwood Town in what has been an otherwise disappointing campaign, and is now of interest to Championship clubs.

The Cod Army saw themselves relegated from League One after nine years in the third tier of English football on Saturday, meaning a return to his parent club Celtic is on the horizon for Lawal.

However, this summer is set to bring a bring plenty of interest in the versatile youngster.

According to Alan Nixon of The Sun, Marti Cifuentes' QPR are leading the race for the Republic of Ireland U-21 international, with promoted duo Portsmouth and Derby County also among his suitors heading into the summer.

Bosun Lawal's background

Lawal started his footballing career with the joint youth setup of Irish sides St. Kevin's Boys and Bohemian, briefly featuring for the latter at U-19 level. That was before he joined then Premier League side Watford in 2019 at the age of 15.

While at Watford, he was named academy player of the year for the 2020/21 season, and earned praise from then first-team captain Troy Deeney, who compared him to one of their star men: Abdoulaye Doucoure He was offered a one-year contract by Watford in May 2021, but had attracted interest from other English clubs, as well as Scottish side Celtic, with the latter showing the strongest interest in his services.

After rejecting a contract offer from Watford, Lawal made the move to Scotland, joining Celtic in July 2021. He initially linked up with the club's B-team, where he impressed with his performances and was growing in reputation, primarily as a central defender, leading to fresh links away from the club.

Lawal continued to go from strength-to-strength and was named on the bench for the first-team for the first time as Celtic went on to beat St Johnstone 4-1 in December 2022. Shortly after, he made his senior debut in January 2023, coming on as a late substitute in a 5-0 Scottish Cup win against Greenock Morton for his only appearance for the senior side so far.

On August 17th 2023, Lawal signed a new long-term contract with Celtic until the summer of 2026, and on the same day, he joined Fleetwood in League One on a season-long loan deal, where he would be managed by former Celtic captain and club legend Scott Brown.

Lawal's 2023/24 season

This season has seen Lawal take even greater strides in his development, all the way into senior football, with the youngster impressing and growing as a player by the game for Fleetwood, in spite of the club's own difficulties this term.

He originally signed as a centre-back under Brown, but his best performances have come following his dismissal, with Charlie Adam turning him into a midfielder to great effect. Operating as a defensive or central midfield player in a three-man midfield, he has become one of the best ball-carrying midfielders in the division.

Unsurprisingly, due to his sheer size and frame at 6'2", Lawal is an absolute powerhouse, and combines excellent strength with the ability to move the ball very quickly. He has plenty of attributes to make it to a higher level already, thus Championship interest is to be expected.

Things for Fleetwood improved drastically under Adam in the latter parts of the season, despite not quite staving off relegation, and Lawal has showcased his ability play a possession-based game, or to go longer, whilst dominating the area in both boxes as well. The decision by Adam to move him into midfield has been an inspired one, which gave Fleetwood a real chance of staying up, with the midfielder impressing again on final day during a 3-0 win over Burton Albion.

Lawal has been virtually ever-present this season, featuring in 42 of the club's 46 league games, including 40 starts. It's been a hugely beneficial loan in terms of his development, and the obvious next step is Celtic's first-team or the Championship next season, be that with QPR, PortsmouthDerby County.