Celtic considering Premiership goalkeeper to replace Joe Hart

Originally posted on The Celtic Star | Last updated 5/9/24

Celtic are reportedly considering Motherwell captain Liam Kelly to replace Joe Hart. The 28-year-old is out of contract at Fir Park this summer and Celtic’s Stevie Woods is said to be an admirer of the stopper.

With Joe Hart retiring this summer, the No.1 jersey is up for grabs and a variety of names have been linked with a move to Paradise. However, the Daily Mail are reporting that Kelly’s name has emerged as a contender to replace Hart.

Kelly is out of contract and would be available for a free transfer but is attracting interest from England for his displays behind a ropey Motherwell defence.

Benjamin Siegrist is expected to depart this summer, too and you would expect that the Scotland Internationalist could be seen as a back-up option to come in. Kelly is probably a better alternative to Scott Bain as a back-up but is unlikely to fit the profile of someone like Hart.

Kelly started his career at Rangers with loan moves to East Fife and Livingston before making the move permanent to the Tony Macaroni Stadium. There he impressed earning a move to QPR, which didn’t pan out as hoped resulting in a return to Motherwell.

Given that he is domestically trained and Scottish, Kelly would help towards Celtic’s UEFA squad requirements. Although, fans will be a bit apprehensive about signing the player – it feels a bit like signing Mark Brown, who came through the ranks at Rangers, to support Artur Boruc. The issue with this analogy is that there is no clear No.1 for Kelly to support.

This article first appeared on The Celtic Star and was syndicated with permission.

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