Bosun Lawal is generating plenty of excitement at Celtic amid his return for pre-season under Brendan Rodgers this summer.
Despite initially being profiled as a central defender, Lawal shone out on loan at Fleetwood Town in 2023/24, showing his capacity to operate in midfield.
Overall, the Republic of Ireland Under-21 international featured 47 times in all competitions, registering six goals and two assists [Transfermarkt].
Having spent time with their senior set-up and Under-21 squad during the international break, Ireland Football’s official X account shared a snippet of Lawal’s ability to drift by players at will in a short clip where he produces some wonderful skill to evade his man and set up an impressive goal.
There is real hope that he could be a breakthrough star at Celtic in 2024/25, and Rodgers is set to take a look at the 21-year-old once the Bhoys report back to Lennoxtown.
Former coach Omer Riza discusses Bosun Lawal’s credentials
Omer Riza coached Lawal while he was coming through at Watford, and it is fair to say he rates the prospect highly as murmurs that he could break into the Celtic first-team grow stronger.
Speaking to The Celtic Way, the 44-year-old can see partial similarities between Lawal and ex-Premier League icon Yaya Toure in some aspects of his game while he also likened Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure to the Dublin-born man.
He explained: “I still say that he can be a top, top player at centre-back, because his physical attributes mean that he wouldn’t have a problem against quick forwards, but he’s shown at Fleetwood that he can play in midfield, too.
“I don’t want to compare him to Yaya Toure, but the profile shows that he can possibly become good in those areas with the existing qualities that he’s got, like the Ivory Coast midfielder. He’s still got a lot to learn and he’s still young, but you don’t want to put too much pressure on young shoulders too soon.”
Lawal is an exciting young player that can occupy a position that Celtic are likely to need new blood in this summer to freshen things up ahead of the new season.
Nobody is saying he should be thrown in as a starter straight away, but with a long campaign in-store, opportunities could present themselves for the Irishman to make his mark.
Rodgers has an excellent track record of developing talent, making Lawal’s future a topic to keep clued into over the coming months.