Jeremie Frimpong looks like he’s on his way out of Celtic Park, this will mean, long term, Celtic will need a replacement.

It’s all about finding talent, nurturing them and selling on for a major profit. Nobody expected Frimpong to garner so much, so soon, this will be one of the quicker profit turnovers in quite some time for the club.

Bhoys Analytics has been doing some fantastic work on social media surrounding stats and scouting talent; they have been on the ball and have already offered up their opinion on who should succeed Jeremie at Celtic Park.

Celtic Scouting – Jelle Bataille

• 21yo
• 5ft9
• RB/RWB
• KV Oostende

We need to replace Jeremie Frimpong long term, I think Bataille is that and more.

Celtic require attacking fullbacks that can provide creatively. Bataille is already outperforming Frimpong in xA (at 0.2xA P90), but it’s his crossing (with both feet) that is a joy to watch. Performing 2 more crosses than Frimpong P90 with a 43% success rate (Frimpong 18%)

He loves to hug the touchline and makes great overlapping runs to give him better crossing positions. The graph below shows that he is good when aggressive on the ball. Passing accuracy is low (10% below Celtic full-backs) but that’s expected in less dominant teams.

Defensively and stature wise he is very similar to Frimpong. Which means he won’t be challenging aerially for much. Defensive duels are where he needs to improve. Oostende aren’t as dominant as Celtic so defensive volumes are higher (3 more defensive duels P90 over Frimpong).

However, I think Bataille’s a very intelligent player offensively and defensively often making good decisions. This can be seen from his interceptions, which speaks to his ability to read the game

At 21, 22 by the end of the season, I think Bataille is the perfect choice to be the new Celtic Right Back. He also has 6 Belgium U21 appearances already and may turn into a full international at Celtic if coached well in a good system.

My final thoughts

The player is out of contract in 2022, he fits the profile and would be an improvement on Jeremie Frimpong. Celtic would be able to afford him and land a work permit. I really like the look of him, a very intelligent player that can read the game with lots of room to develop and ultimately sell on for a much higher fee.