The permanent signing of Republic of Ireland international Adam Idah by Celtic this summer was met with high hopes, especially after his successful six-month loan spell, where he essentially dragged Celtic to the league title and the Scottish Cup.
After the Scottish Cup final, Rodgers said he was keen to bring the striker back, and Celtic fans were all on board with the idea, and at the time, would’ve paid the £9.5 million price tag, but after a slow start to permanent life at Celtic, there’s a bit of revisionism.
Doubts have emerged over whether Idah was the right investment, particularly given the substantial £9 million price tag attached to his move.
Former Celtic striker John Hartson recently voiced these concerns, reflecting the growing uncertainty within the fanbase. Speaking on Go Radio, Hartson acknowledged that while Idah showed great promise last season, his impact this term has yet to match expectations.
One of Idah’s biggest challenges is competing with Celtic’s star striker, Kyogo, whose excellent form has limited Idah’s opportunities to lead the line. According to Hartson, this could be affecting Idah’s confidence, with his frequent bench role hindering his ability to find rhythm and self-belief.
“I don’t know how many were on Celtic’s shopping list, I have to be honest with you.
“But they went for Adam Idah. I think we all got, not sucked in, but we were all impressed last season. I think it was 19 appearances, a lot of them were off the bench, delighted that he scored the winning goal in the cup final against Rangers. He made a real big hero of himself. Big name for himself. Scored some big goals, by the way, in the run-in.
“He hasn’t hit the ground running. One of them reasons is that it’s very hard to dislodge Kyogo. Sometimes when you feel that you are next man in and not the number one striker, it can give you that lack of confidence and you are thinking ‘the manager isn’t putting me in this week’, in terms of being the main number nine. I think sometimes that can halt your confidence. I am not going to criticise him too much, but I am not sure who else Celtic had their eye on last season. He cost £9 million. A lot of the fans might just say well. Could we have got a better one? One of the reasons why Celtic took him is because he did so well on loan. He seemed the obvious one.”
We know the potential Idah has, so to start doubting him in October, when he’s had limited minutes is premature. I’m sure by the summer we’ll be talking about how big his contributions have been.
