Celtic have been told that they could have had the league title in the bag had they signed Lawrence Shankland in January.
The Hearts striker scored against Brendan Rodgers‘ side in the 2-0 win at Tynecastle and that goal takes his tally to 27 for the season.
Given a £4m valuation earlier this season, former Hearts man and now BBC pundit, Allan Preston, has told Celtic that had they signed Shankland, their chances of winning the league would have been seriously enhanced.
Preston said [BBC Radio Scotland], “And I’ve said this to friends and Hearts fans won’t want to hear this, but can they keep him? Very doubtful.
“But see if I was Brendan Rodgers or Philippe Clement I would have bought him in January.
“I would have paid what Hearts wanted. Because he scores goals. He’s the best striker in Scotland and he would maybe have won one of them the league.
“It’s going to be tight between the two of them but having Lawrence Shankland in your team enhances your chances of winning the league.”
Lawrence Shankland Celtic striker?
I’ve been quite vocal on this when I was writing for TBR Celtic over the last few months. I was sceptical on whether the Hearts striker would add quality to the Celtic team but his performances this season in front of goal cannot be denied.
Shankland’s strike against Celtic at Tynecastle was his 27th of the season. In the league, the 28-year-old has 20 to his name and leads the goalscoring charts in the SPFL. [Transfermarkt]
Put those goals into this Celtic team and with the amount of chances Rodgers’ team creates, you can’t help but wonder if we had Shankland in the team would Celtic have dropped points against Aberdeen, Kilmarnock and Hearts since the return of the winter break?
Unfortunately, we will never know. And I think we can all agree that the window of opportunity to sign Shankland if there ever was one, has well and truly gone now.
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