Celtic have seen a significant number of players make moves away from the Parkhead club during this latest summer transfer window.
Some have left on free transfers such as Nir Bitton, Luca Connell and Karamoko Dembele, and others have left on temporary loan deals such as Ismaila Soro, Liam Scales and Osaze Urhoghide.
With some time left before the window closes, there are still some figures in Ange Postecoglou’s squad that could well end up following in the footsteps of these previously mentioned players and make a move away from Parkhead.
One name that has been touted with a loan move away from the club this summer, that would be better off elsewhere, is Mikey Johnston.
Having worked his way through the youth ranks at the Glasgow club, the winger has racked up 79 senior appearances for the Bhoys.
In those appearances, the 23-year-old, who is currently picking up a weekly wage of £7.9k-per-week, has scored 11 goals and delivered ten assists in the process, all while being labelled “the new Ryan Christie” by Chris Sutton.
Last season saw the attacker start just five of the 20 appearances he made across all competitions, which shows just how far down the pecking order he is.
What should Celtic do with Mikey Johnston?
Keep him in the squad
Loan him out
Sell him
In his 12 SPFL appearances, the Scotsman failed to provide even one goal or assist for Postecoglou’s side, which is rather disappointing given how the Hoops ended the campaign with more goals scored (92) than any other side in the division.
Even when he did manage to get on the pitch in a league game, the winger failed to impose himself as an attacking threat as only six of the 25 shots at goal he had throughout the campaign were on target, leaving him with one of the lowest percentages for shots on target (24%) in the squad.
Not only were his shots at goal lacking in inspiration but his crosses and final ball were too, with BBC Sportsound pundit Willie Miller labelling him as “pathetic” in that area of his game.
This shows that his lack of attacking prowess is holding the team back. Had they not had the likes of Jota, Kyogo Furuhashi and Liel Abada firing the goals in throughout the season, they certainly would have been worse off with Johnston in the side.
Combine that with the fact the Scot is yet to make an appearance in the league this season, perhaps moving him out on loan, or even a permanent deal, before the summer transfer window closes would be beneficial for all parties. It feels like now is finally the time to cut ties with him as the winger is simply not good enough.