Celtic and the £17m transfer splash that proves Parkhead conviction is back - Chris Sutton

Celtic have made a £17 million statement. On the back of last season’s title win, I felt it was imperative that the club built from a position of strength. Don’t sit still. Don’t rest on laurels.

Full marks to them so far. They have blasted out of the transfer blocks with impressive investment.

It’s sometimes easy in the footballing world just to toss figures around. But to have outlaid that amount of cash by the first Saturday in July means the two key departments of Celtic are working excellently. The footballing department with Ange Postecoglou and his recruitment staff are really on-point here. Identifying areas quickly, and the hierarchy of the club are also doing their bit to support their boss. Taking his visions and funding them.

There is a conviction about this. Deals are being put in place early again, just as they were in January when Postecoglou identified Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi as mid-season targets and the board delivered them on the first day of the month. The boss has earned the right for serious backing with his previous Parkhead work in the market and was responsible for giving the club a fantastic platform to go on and make the additions that he wants.

Unlike past years, no worrying about what money is coming in without knowing if the team is going to get past the Champions League qualifiers. No need to have to wait until the end of August to tell players if they have group stage football or not or whether the finance is coming through the door to pay for deals.

Celtic know the lie of the land, but the most important thing is that they are making best use of this knowledge and taking advantage. I’ve been critical in the past of Celtic’s workings in the market. Taking too