Those of a Celtic persuasion may have viewed the latest round of international action with gritted teeth, having been forced to witness the eye-catching displays of one of the Old Firm side’s former assets – Ben Doak.
The teenage sensation departed for Liverpool back in 2022 during Ange Postecoglou‘s time at the helm, with the wing wizard having been enticed by the dazzling lights of the Premier League, after making just two appearances for the Hoops at senior level.
Still only 19, the young Scotsman is developing into something of a household name due to his displays for his country, in particular, having notably run Manchester City man Josko Gvardiol ragged in the 1-0 win over Croatia.
Likened to England and Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham by talkSPORT pundit Ally McCoist, due to the “freedom” with which he plays, Doak represents a tale of what might have been for those back at Parkhead, had they perhaps done more to keep hold of them.
There are perhaps others who have departed in recent years that the Hoops also wish remained on the books, with there having been a handful of notable exits during Postecoglou’s reign, in particular…
Notable Celtic departures under Ange Postecoglou
Let’s first say that one of the many strengths of the Greek-Aussie’s stunning Celtic tenure was his recruitment, with the current Tottenham Hotspur boss having played his part in snapping up the likes of Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Matt O’Riley – just to a name a few – on the cheap.
Equally, the experienced coach was also wise in phasing out or replacing certain players at the right time, having notably sold Josip Juranovic to Union Berlin in January 2023, with Alistair Johnston already in the door as his successor.
Juranovic has since played just 45 times for the Bundesliga side and has seen his value decrease, while Johnston, it must be said, is simply soaring for the Scottish champions.
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While the sale of the Croatian can be considered a success, one man who left in that same period and has perhaps not been truly replaced is Giorgos Giakoumakis, with the Greek powerhouse still arguably an upgrade on young Adam Idah.
Celtic sold an upgrade on Idah
With Odsonne Edouard out the door, Postecoglou sought to bolster his centre-forward ranks with two key signings in the summer of 2021, having first brought in Kyogo Furhashi from Vissel Kobe on a £4.6m deal, prior to snapping up Giakoumakis from Eredivisie side, VVV-Venlo for just £2.5m.
It was the latter man who was arguably the more proven option due to his prior experience in European football, with the 6 foot 1 ace having made the move to Glasgow after finishing as the top scorer in Holland with 26 goals in just 30 league outings in 2020/21.
From the get-go, however, it was Kyogo who emerged as Postecoglou’s main man, with the Japanese star scoring 20 goals in just 33 games in that injury-impacted debut campaign.
To his credit, however, despite being restricted to just 15 starts in all competitions, Giakoumakis was not far behind when the season drew to a close, having registered 17 goals of his own from only 29 outings.
Largely utilised off the bench, the one-time AEK Athens man – who Chris Sutton described as the ‘the best finisher at Celtic‘ – remained the second choice option heading into the second season, with just seven of his 28 appearances at the start of the 2022/23 campaign coming from the outset.
Giakoumakis’ senior career record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Club | Games | Goals | Assists |
AO Platanias | 67 | 15 | 5 |
Celtic | 57 | 26 | 2 |
AEK Athens | 48 | 3 | 2 |
Atlanta United | 46 | 24 | 5 |
VVV-Venlo | 33 | 29 | 2 |
CD Cruz Azul | 17 | 6 | 5 |
OFI Crete | 12 | 3 | 1 |
Gornik Zabrze | 12 | 3 | 1 |
AO Episkopi Rethymnou | 11 | 2 | 1 |
Total | 300 | 111 | 24 |
Even after scoring four goals across three successive league starts in October 2022, the hulking marksman could not do enough to impress Postecoglou, having subsequently gone on to start just two more Premiership games, prior to his exit in February 2023.
With Oh Hyeon-gyu in the door, Giakoumakis – who felt he was “forced” out of the club by Postecoglou and co – was allowed to exit on a £4.3m deal to join MLS side Atlanta United, ending a fruitful 18-month stint in Glasgow with 26 goals from only 57 appearances.
Since departing, the 29-year-old has been in “beast mode” – according to journalist Felipe Cardenas – after netting 24 goals in 46 games during his time in America, while he has since been on fire at new club Cruz Azul in Mexico, with six goals and four assists chalked up in 2024/25 so far.
The aforementioned Idah, for instance, has scored just five goals and contributed no assists since his permanent return to Celtic over the summer, with there still perhaps lingering doubts over the wisdom of his £9.5m acquisition.
Of course, the 23-year-old is still young, yet he has remarkably scored just 31 senior goals in his club career so far, from 150 appearances. To put that into perspective, Giakoumakis, meanwhile, has netted 30 times already at club level since leaving Celtic
Hopefully, Idah can prove to be the stern competition for Kyogo that Giakoumakis certainly was, although there must be a tinge of regret that the latter man was allowed to depart, particularly considering he is now said to be worth €9m (£7.5m), as per Transfermarkt. Idah’s value, for context, is said to be just €5m (£4m).
As already stated, the Irishman has time on his side to reach greater levels, but there is work to be done to prove that he is of the same ilk of Celtic’s former Greek “God“…
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