Jason Denayer a free agent, Celtic can only ask the question

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The Celtic Star

·1 febbraio 2025

Jason Denayer a free agent, Celtic can only ask the question

Jason Denayer, the Belgian centre-back who played for us under Ronny Deila a decade ago has been released by Saudi side Al Fateh, and it’s led to many Celtic supporters asking the same question – should Brendan Rodgers consider bringing him back, even on a short term basis?

Eden Hazard, Thibaut Courtois, Dedryck Boyata, Jason Denayer and Thomas Vermaelen of Belgium stand for the national anthem prior to the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Group B match between Finland and Belgium at Saint Petersburg Stadium on June 21, 2021 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. (Photo by Anton Vaganov – Pool/Getty Images)

Jason Denayer arrived on loan from Man City back in 2014 as a fresh faced youngster looking to pick up some valuable experience of first team football, and he did just that by forming a successful partnership with Virgil Van Djik helping the club win two honours, which resulted in the young Belgian gaining a personal accolade as he was named the SPFA Young Player of the Year.

OneFootball Video

PFA young player of the year nominees Ryan Christie of Inverness Caledonian Thistle,Sam Nicholson of Hearts, Jamie Walker of Hearts and Jason Denayer of Celtic pose at the Scottish Premiership Player of the Year Awards Nominees photocall at the Hilton on April 23, 2015 in Glasgow. (Photo by Jeff Holmes/Getty Images)

Former Celtic defender Jason Denayer is now a free agent

Unfortunately Jason didn’t extended his stay and went back to Man City before having two further loan spells with Galatasaray with a spell at Sunderland sandwiched in between.

Jason left the Etihad permanently in 2018 when he joined French side Lyon in a €6.5 deal. It was with the Ligue 1 side that he made his name playing 139 games and scoring eight goals over a four year period, and solidified a place in the Belgian national squad.

Steven Bergwijn of Al-Ittihad is challenged by Jason Denayer of Al Fateh during the Saudi Pro League match between Al Ittihad v Al Qadsiah FC at Prince Abdullah Sports City on November 24, 2024 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)

After becoming a free agent Jason decided to join UAE side Shabab Al Ahli but his stay only lasted eight months as he moved to Saudi Arabia to sign for Al Fateh.

Jason is now a free agent again, and still only 29 he has a lot to offer. He is a player with proven ability and experience of playing at the top level of the game whether that be at club level or international level. He also knows Scottish football and what it means to play for Celtic.

Should Brendan Rodgers make a move?

We could do worse than ask the question, even if it’s just a deal until the end of the season. Our defence at the top level has been brutally exposed on occasion such as Wednesday night, especially with Cameron Carter-Vickers out. Bringing in an experienced player in Jason could be highly beneficial.

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