GK: Raymond Dekker. The man they nicknamed 'Desmond'. A free transfer from Feyenoord in the summer of 2018, the 6'10 Dutchman went on to make close to 1,000 appearances in a Celtic shirt and kept clean sheets in over 60% of the games he featured in. Arguably Sharples' most important signing for the Bhoys. He retired in 2038, with Celtic still searching for a suitable successor to the giant.
RB: Adam Matthews. The Welshman had already been at the club for six years when Sharples arrived at the club in 2017 and stayed for the next seven seasons racking up honours along the way. Many of the goals scored by Celtic in those years came from Matthews' right back position. He left to join Norwich for just £1m in 2024 before moves to Hull City and New York Red Bull, he retired in 2028.
CB: Martin Luptak. Signed from Rapid Vienna for £7.5m in 2026, the Slovakian defender formed an impressive partnership alongside former captain Borja for a decade and was shortlisted for the Ballon d'Or on four separate occasions. His leadership and ability to keep a cool head was often cited as the reason Celtic continued their dominance of European football. After 15 years of service, he left the club on a free transfer in the summer of 2041.
CB: Nathaniel Chalobah. His free transfer signing from Chelsea in 2019 marked the beginning of Celtic's impressive rise to one of Europe's leading clubs. Captaining the Bhoys to their first European Cup in 55 years in 2022. Won almost a century of England caps during his time at the club. He moved to Sunderland in 2026 for £5m following the arrivals of Luptak and Borja, before retiring in 2030.
LB: Zarko Koprivica. Another player signed from Austrian side Rapid Vienna, moving to Celtic for £2.5m in 2018. In his seven years at the club he made the left back berth his own and became one of the leading full backs in Europe. Why Sharples allowed him to move to Everton for just £100k in 2025 still remains a mystery.
DM: Karim Guendouz. Turning down a move to Celtic to join CS Sedan Ardennes in 2025, Sharples had to wait until his contract expired at the French club in 2029 to finally get the Algerian international. His ability to read the game was crucial to the side, and his 22 goals for the club nearly always came at crucial times. He departed the club in 2038 for £2.5m to spend a season with Manchester City before retiring.
CM: Zarko Maric. A complete unknown outside his native Serbia when the midfielder arrived at the Bhoys for £4m in 2021, but his hard tackling soon endeared him to the Parkhead faithful. He spent 13 years with the club forming one of the best midfield partnerships in the world with Mike Owen, before retiring in the summer of 2034.
CM: Mike Owen. The Manchester United academy graduate spent time on loan at four different Championship clubs before moving to Celtic in 2018. His technical ability struck the perfect balance alongside the tenacity of Zarko Maric, with many comparing their partnership to that of Andrea Pirlo and Rino Gattuso. He retired at the club just one season before his Serbian friend, in 2033.
AMR: Sven Zwarthoed. One of Europe's hottest properties when he joined Celtic from Ajax in 2023 for £4m aged just 15, and initially signed as Mike Owen's long term successor in central midfield. Converted to play on the right wing while in the Celtic youth teams, he usurped one time record signing Tyrone Trice to become a first team regular by 2030 and has since made almost 600 appearances for the club.
AML: Marc Walsh. A surprise signing from Norwich City when his contract expired at the Norfolk club in 2032. By 2034 the Irishman had shown enough talent for Sharples to sell the man who scored a brace in the 2032 Champions League final, Noé Rojas, to the Canaries. His speed and crossing ability has seen him twice nominated for the Ballon d'Or and rack up nearly 200 assists for the Bhoys in just over 300 games.
ST: Ivica Strok. Quite simply Celtic's greatest ever player, their record goalscorer and arguably the best striker in footballing history. The Croatian joined Celtic for £5m in January 2020 and over the next two decades has scored over 800 times for the Glasgow club. Initially signed to provide competition to Marcel Kovar, Strok had already scored 157 times by the time Kovar left for Monaco in 2024 - 25 more than the Czech did in his entire Celtic career. Many say being overlooked for the 2032 Ballon d'Or is one of football's great injustices of the modern era. Strok also holds the record for most goals in the Champions League (109) and most goals in international football (152).
No comments:
Post a Comment