Worth £473k in 2020, now worth £3.6m: Ange played a blinder on "crucial" Celtic star - opinion

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou made no bones in making some significant changes to the squad at Parkhead after he was appointed manager back in June.

The previous summer transfer window saw some big names wave goodbye to the club such as Odsonne Edouard, Ryan Christie, Kristoffer Ajer, Olivier Ntcham and Scott Brown among others.

As well as this, the Hoops saw numerous other players sign to the Parkhead side on loan or permanent deals.

One figure that was signed during that period was defender Carl Starfelt, who joined from Rubin Kazan on a four-year deal for a reported fee of £4m.

Throughout his debut campaign with the Bhoys, the £17k-per-week centre-back racked up 49 appearances across all competitions, showing just how much of an important figure he was for Postecoglou.

Not only did he play more minutes in the league than any other outfield player in the squad, but he also showed what a capable and solid defender he is.

With the second-highest number of interceptions (42) and tackles won (30) to his name, Starfelt also had the joint-second highest average of clearances (3.5) and joint-highest average for aerial duels won per game (4.2).

Looking at how Celtic ended the season with the best defensive record with only 22 goals conceded in 38 games, it’s safe to say that their defensive recruit has been a big reason the Hoops have that record under their belt.

This also backs up why the Sweden international was labelled as being a “crucial” player for his manager by journalist Sacha Pisani on Twitter.

Back in April 2020, Transfermarkt rated the 26-year-old’s market value at £473k, whereas it currently stands at £3.6m, highlighting a significant increase of 661%.

This shows the sort of trajectory he’s been on over the