Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has endured mixed fortunes regarding the impact his signings have made since arriving at Parkhead over the last two windows.
From the summer, Luis Palma has probably become the most noticeable constant, though the Honduran winger has been in and out of his starting line-up for a few weeks now.
Paulo Bernardo and Hyunjung Yang have shown glimpses of their abilities; however, few have hit the nail on the head consistently enough in green and white.
In the lead-up to the mid-season market, Rodgers called for ‘quality’ additions to walk through the door on several occasions, citing a desire to take his squad to the next level on both domestic and European fronts.
Once business commenced, Celtic brought in Republic of Ireland international Adam Idah on loan alongside German winger Nicolas Kuhn from Rapid Vienna, with the latter costing a fee in the region of £3 million.
Idah has made an excellent impression, registering five goals and one assist in his opening eight appearances for the Bhoys [Transfermarkt].
Examining Kuhn’s case, he did initially flatter to deceive; regardless, the ex-Germany Under-20 international showed fans what he is capable of against Livingston last weekend, collecting an assist of his own and regularly leaving visiting full-back Cristian Montano trailing in his wake.
Looking forward, many will hope he can put his early struggles in Glasgow, including a bout of weight loss brought on by dental surgery, behind him as he seeks to establish himself on the flank.
Stephen McGinn’s verdict on Celtic winger Nicolas Kuhn
Pundit Stephen McGinn has thrown caution to the wind by claiming that Kuhn’s exciting display against Livingston doesn’t mean he will automatically be the star of the show for the remainder of the season.
Nevertheless, he does believe the winger showed ‘much more positive’ signs that can be built on at Parkhead over the coming months.
McGinn said [Go Radio Football Show]: “It’s early days, I mean, at home to the (side) bottom of the league, it’s a great ball for Daizen Maeda’s goal, definitely more positive signs than before, and it’s unfortunate if he was suffering with the weight loss.”
He later added: “You’re judged on your performance whether you’re 10% fit or 100% fit, and up until Sunday where he showed glimpses, you’re actually you’re really worried in terms of him being on the five-and-a-half-year deal and thinking already with the winger issues, we might need someone to come in and replace him.”
“Much more positive signs, hopefully, he can sort the physical side of the issues he had, and he can push on from what was a better performance.”
Undoubtedly, there have been some mitigating circumstances that haven’t proved to be advantageous to Kuhn, which are now hopefully behind him as we build towards the climax of the season.
Rodgers clearly values his talent, and there is every possibility that he could earn a second start in succession this weekend at home to St Johnstone due to Hyunjun Yang’s suspension.
Should he be granted another opportunity, it would be great to see the 24-year-old rise to the occasion as the Bhoys search for a crucial three points.