Why Celtic parting ways with Tom Rogic would be a smart decision

According to Glasgow Live, Celtic manager Neil Lennon has confirmed that the Hoops have accepted a bid for midfielder Tom Rogic from an unnamed Qatari club.

It was reported earlier in August that an unnamed club from Qatar had come up with a £4m offer for Rogic and Lennon has now confirmed those claims.

The Hoops boss hasn’t revealed the name of the club involved or the exact amount of the bid submitted. But, he has acknowledged that negotiations are ongoing with the 27-year-old to depart Parkhead this summer. (h/t Glasgow Live)

Profile

Born in Canberra, Australia, Tom Rogic featured for Tuggeranong United at the youth level before playing senior football for ANU FC and Belconnen United. He subsequently joined Central Coast Mariners, where he won the A-League title in 2011-12 and eventually earned a move to Celtic in January 2013.

Rogic returned to his homeland on loan with Melbourne Victory in January 2014 after initially struggling for regular minutes at Parkhead. The attacking midfielder, though, gradually established himself as a regular fixture for the Hoops over the next few seasons, enjoying the status as a firm fan favourite at the club.

The 27-year-old Australian international has featured 189 times across all competitions for Celtic, scoring 38 times and registering 34 assists in the process.

Celtic need to move away from Rogic 

Make no mistake, Rogic has been a wonderful servant to Celtic over the past seven years, with the Australian star scoring several spectacular goals to establish himself as a hugely popular figure among the Hoops faithful. 

A winner of 13 major pieces of silverware, including 5 domestic titles, Rogic remains a bonafide witness to Celtic’s unparalleled dominance on the Scottish throne in recent years. His quality as a goalscoring midfielder cannot been called into question. But what ultimately makes him dispensable for Celtic is his terrible injury record.

The 27-year-old has struggled with injuries throughout his senior career, partly causing his influence to wane over the past couple of seasons. In fact, Rogic has missed an astonishing 94 games due to miscellaneous injuries since the start of the 2013-14 season. (h/t Transfermarkt)

Rogic lost his role as a regular starter to the likes of Ryan Christie, Olivier Ntcham and Callum McGregor last season. He wasn’t used much by the manager even when he was fit to play.

Now, with Celtic completing a deal for Motherwell starlet David Turnbull this summer, Rogic’s involvement would get limited even further.

Read more

• Why Celtic should make a move for Rodrigo Riquelme
• Why Caleb Ekuban could be a smart signing for Celtic

Verdict

Taking all the factors into consideration, cashing in on the injury-prone Rogic would be a smart move for the Scottish champions. The Australian hasn’t been a regular under Lennon and in Turnbull, they have the heir apparent for Rogic.