Brendan’s update on incomings, Welsh injury, Nygren, KT and more

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The Celtic Star

·9 Juli 2025

Brendan’s update on incomings, Welsh injury, Nygren, KT and more

Brendan Rodgers has given an update on potential incomings, the status of Reo Hatate and Cameron Carter-Vickers and Stephen Welsh’s shoulder injury…

Brendan Rodgers manager of Celtic meets fans before the game Cork City v Celtic, Pre Season Friendly, Football, SuperValu Pairc Ui Chaoimh, Cork, Ireland – 08 July 2025. Photo Lorraine O’Sullivan Shutterstock

Celtic defeated Irish Premier Division side Cork City last night 2-1 and will now jet off to sunny Portugal for two more pre-season training and further fixtures.

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Celtic are actively pursuing multiple signings, with £5 million-rated Michel-Ange Balikwisha of Royal Antwerp and Rapid Vienna’s Isak Jansson among the top names on their radar.

Isak Jansson of SK Rapid during the UEFA Conference League 2024/25 Round of 16 Second Leg match between SK Rapid and FK Borac at Weststadion on March 13, 2025 in Vienna, Austria. (Photo by Christian Hofer/Getty Images)

Now, Rodgers is keen to bolster his squad with fresh signings before they depart for their warm-weather training camp in the Algarve.

The Celtic boss revealed that the club are pushing hard to get the right players through the door. Speaking via Daily Record, he said:

“There is lot of work going on in the background and things that are what we’re hoping to achieve over the coming weeks. We definitely need that there, especially at the top end of the pitch. But no, a lot of work going on but I can’t confirm that there’s anything there at this moment. Those international boys, they’ve now got the run-in, so it will be their first action at the weekend.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rogers meets fans before the game Cork City v Celtic, Pre Season Friendly, Football, SuperValu Pairc Ui Chaoimh, Cork, Ireland – 08 July 2025Cork SuperValu Pairc Ui Chaoimh Ireland Photo Lorraine O’Sullivan Shutterstock

Rodgers has been thoroughly impressed by the early impact of both the returning Kieran Tierney and newcomer Benjamin Nygren. “I’m really excited by him [Nygren], he’s a forward thinking player, he’s got good legs, gets about the pitch and he’s showed up well since he’s come in,” he said.

“Kieran was fantastic in my first time here. He’s gone away and gained a lot of experience and maturity. We also want to manage him because he’s had a lot of troubles in his fitness history over the last few years, but it’s great to have him back,” Brendan said.

“You see that power and I know he’s so excited about being back. Like I say, he’s only in the building, but he’s going to get up to speed. You see that competitiveness that he has and he’s doing really.”

The Irishman also revealed that Reo Hatate is nearing full fitness, with Cameron Carter-Vickers expected back within two weeks.

Reo Hatate. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

He said: “Reo is fine. He’s been training since he’s come back and looked really good. He’s looked really strong so no repercussions of the injury.”

Cameron Carter-Vickers. theRangers v Celtic, 4 May 2025. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

“Cam, again, just working with the conditioners on the field on his own and we’re thinking around about either just before or just after Newcastle he’ll be ready to play. But he’ll be joining in fairly soon,” the Celtic manager said.

Defender Stephen Welsh, recently linked with a permanent switch to KV Mechelen following a successful loan spell during the second half of last season, picked up a fresh shoulder injury in Cork.

Giving an update on Welsh’s situation, Rodgers outlined: “It’s a bit of an annoyance for him because that’s the fourth time it’s happened to him. So we just needed to make sure he was okay and get him off.”

Conor Spence

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