Kristoffer Ajer has been in the limelight recently after his agent said he was looking for a move away, and Alan Hutton has shared his belief that Neil Lennon dealt with the situation in an appropriate manner.
What did he say?
Lennon has given Ajer a more senior role in the current Celtic side. The Norway international has started 28 league games in the heart of defence and looked assured in doing so.
The Bhoys have lost just once in those fixtures, and that could be what provoked Tore Pedersen, Ajer’s agent, to state last Friday that his client would not be signing a new deal and would instead look for a move away in the summer.
That put pressure on Lennon to respond as Ajer’s current deal expires in 2021, which means the Glasgow outfit risk losing him for a fee below his value.
Despite that, the Celtic boss gave a steadfast response, declaring that no player could hold the club to ransom and ultimately it will be Celtic who decide whether Ajer stays or leaves.
Hutton was impressed with Lennon’s command of the situation, and told Football Insider:
“I think Lennon, he’s probably done the right thing. He’s come out and said: ‘Look, this is just agent talk. It’s nothing to do with the player, he’s happy, we’re happy.’
“The baggage that comes with agents, I do, in a way, understand what they’re doing. They say they’re trying to do the best for their client but when you act like that it’s going to affect everybody.”
Great leadership
Lennon has proved himself to be a no-nonsense type of character on and off the field, and he has had to deal with far more troublesome events in his Celtic career than this, certainly in his first spell.
In recent years Celtic have lost several good players who have gone on to perform to a high standard across the continent, yet they have been replaced and success has continued.
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The best examples are perhaps Virgil van Dijk and Moussa Dembele. A few years have passed since the former left but Celtic have a strong centre-back pairing of Ajer and Christopher Jullien, and that will likely remain the case if one leaves.
Odsonne Edouard scoring 27 goals this term in place of Dembele tells a similar story.
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As a result, Lennon has no need for concern and is dealing with things however he sees fit. That means if an appropriate bid comes in they made consider Ajer’s sale, and if not he will stay and help the Bhoys to try and maintain their unblemished domestic record of recent years.
Elsewhere, our writers have been debating whether the club should take up the option to sign a current loanee on a permanent basis…
