Celtic are one of a whole host of clubs hopeful of landing Jamie Hamilton from Hamilton Academical, according to a report from TEAMtalk.
The lowdown
The 19-year-old is predominantly a centre-back but he can also play on the right of defence.
Celtic fans may remember that he was shown a red card in the first half of their 4-1 victory at The Fountain of Youth Stadium in February 2020. He made 34 Premiership appearances for the club prior to their relegation last year and has been a regular this season in the Championship.
Significantly, the £360,000-rated teenager is out of contract at the end of the current season. As it stands, he’ll be leaving on a free transfer come the summer.
The latest
The report by TEAMtalk claimed that the Accies are ‘increasingly likely’ to lose Hamilton, who has a trio of Premiership admirers in Celtic, Hibernian and Aberdeen.
However, the competition is much more extensive than that. Liverpool, who view the teenager as a potential replacement if Nathaniel Phillips leaves Anfield, lead a quintet of interested Premier League clubs – Brighton, Brentford, Burnley and Newcastle are all in the running.
Hamilton could also receive pre-contract offers from EFL clubs such as Middlesbrough, Blackburn, Blackpool, Barnsley and Sunderland.
The verdict
Liverpool and Celtic stand out as the biggest clubs in the list of interested parties because both have been champions of Europe. They could duly have a key advantage, but they would also have to demonstrate to Hamilton that he has a clear path to first team football at either Anfield or Parkhead.
Perhaps there’s an arrangement here whereby Liverpool sign him, but then send him to Celtic on a season-long loan so that he can play more regularly. If he is a direct replacement for Phillips, who has only started one game in 2021/22, then his initial prospects would surely be limited at Anfield.
That may offer hope to Ange Postecoglou’s side of seeing him lining out in green and white hoops sometime in the near future.
In other news, Celtic are on the brink of this £6m deal
