Celtic could dip into the market to improve their playing squad for the 2024/25 campaign when the upcoming summer transfer window opens for business.
The Hoops recently secured their third straight Scottish Premiership title, which they lifted at Parkhead last weekend, and have the chance to seal a domestic double this weekend.
They travel away from Paradise to take on their local rivals Rangers at Hampden Park in the SFA Cup final, which means that Brendan Rodgers could end the term with two trophies under his belt.
The Northern Irish head coach may hope for a stronger second season back in Glasgow, particularly when it comes to competing on the European front.
Celtic finished bottom of their Champions League group and ended the campaign with just one win in Europe, as they failed to finish third and filter down into the Europa League.
They were also knocked out of the League Cup by Kilmarnock in August, which allowed Rangers to go on and win the competition, and they may aim for more success in those areas next term.
Signing a new left-back appears set to be on the agenda for the Hoops this summer and they could finally cash in on Alexandro Bernabei by swooping to sign a Scottish defender.
Celtic's potential interest in Scottish dynamo
Football Scotland recently claimed that Celtic and Rangers may both be interested in a deal to sign Sassuolo left-back Josh Doig this summer, should he become available.
The article named both clubs as teams who could be in the market for a new number three and that the Scottish full-back could be an ideal target for them, as his team has just been relegated to Serie B.
Doig completed a £5m move to Sassuolo from Hellas Verona, amid interest from the Gers, but Football Scotland suggest that the 22-year-old could want to find an immediate exit from the Italian side rather than playing second division football next season.
Back in February, journalist Dean Jones claimed that a left-back would be a "top target" for the Scottish giants in the upcoming summer transfer window.
Greg Taylor is currently the club's only natural left-back option in the squad, as Bernabei was sent out on loan to Brazilian side
Internacional until the end of 2024.
The Argentine defender, who is under contract until 2027, is set to return to Celtic in January 2025 but Rodgers could permanently bin the Hoops flop by signing Doig to take his place in the squad moving forward, leaving no room for him to return next year.
Why Celtic should cash in on Alexandro Bernabei
Since his £3.75m move to Parkhead from Lanus in the summer of 2022, Bernabei has failed to earn himself a regular spot in the team in Glasgow.
In the 2022/23 campaign under Ange Postecoglou, who brought him to the club, the left-back made 15 appearances and nine starts in the Scottish Premiership.
In those 15 matches, the 23-year-old flop did not do enough to convince the Australian head coach that he should have been ahead of Taylor in the pecking order.
Appearances
15
Starts
9
Dribbled past per game
0.9
Ground duel success rate
37%
Aerial duel success rate
49%
Clean sheets
1
As you can see in the table above, Celtic struggled to keep clean sheets with him in the team and his defensive statistics provide an insight into why that may have been the case.
Opposition players dribbled past him 14 times in nine starts in the Scottish top-flight, whilst he was dominated in duels on the deck and in the air.
These statistics suggest that attackers found it far too easy to get joy against him, in dribbles and in physical contests, and that may be why the Hoops defence only kept one shutout in his games.
Bernabei then lost 53% of his duels and helped the team to keep one clean sheet in eight league outings during the first half of this season before Rodgers decided to send him out on loan to Brazil for the rest of the calendar year.
Since his move to Internacional on loan, the left-footed dud has made one appearance and been an unused substitute in a further six games in all competitions, which does not suggest that he is currently looking likely to return to Glasgow to turn his fortunes around.
Why Celtic should swoop for Josh Doig
Firstly, Celtic should swoop to sign Doig to ensure that they have two left-footed left-back options who can compete with each other and share game time across all domestic and European competitions, rather than being forced to use right-footed players who are limited on the left flank.
This would then improve the competition for places and possibly push Taylor on to improve his own displays, as he would have a player directly competing for his position to drive his motivation up.
It would also allow Rodgers to sanction a permanent exit for Bernabei, whether that is in the summer and in the middle of his loan with Internacional, or when the defender returns to Parkhead in January at the start of next year, as Doig would take up the second left-back spot at the club.
Appearances
34
15
Assists
2
3
Ground duel success rate
57%
37%
Aerial duel success rate
56%
49%
Dribbled past per game
0.3
0.9
Clean sheets
10
1
As you can see in the table above, the 22-year-old star's performances for Hibs in his last Premiership season were far more impressive than Bernabei's showings for Celtic.
The 6 foot 2 ace, who teammate Lewis Stevenson claimed "looks like Ronaldo" with his incredible physique, has the strength and defensive quality to offer far more to the Hoops out of possession.
Doig was also only dribbled past 0.6 times per game across 27 matches in the Serie A for Hellas Verona and Sassuolo combined this season, and ranked within the top 9% of his positional peers for blocks (1.76) per 90.
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The young whiz appears to be far better at the defensive side of the game than Bernabei, who let Celtic down badly on that front, and that is why the Hoops should swoop for the homegrown starlet to bolster their squad and permanently bin the Argentine flop this summer.