{"id":27925,"date":"2026-05-09T21:29:03","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T21:29:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/2026\/05\/09\/celtic-want-this-24-year-old-scottish-midfielder-do-they-really-need-him\/"},"modified":"2026-05-09T21:29:03","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T21:29:03","slug":"celtic-want-this-24-year-old-scottish-midfielder-do-they-really-need-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/2026\/05\/09\/celtic-want-this-24-year-old-scottish-midfielder-do-they-really-need-him\/","title":{"rendered":"Celtic Want This 24-Year-Old Scottish Midfielder: Do They Really Need Him?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Celtic have put Marc Leonard at the top of their wishlist for the 2026\/27 season, reports Pete O\u2019Rourk<\/a>e. The 24-year-old Scottish midfielder has been shining during a standout loan spell at Hearts from Birmingham City. Celtic scouts have been keeping a close eye on him and plan to watch him throughout the rest of the campaign.<\/p>\n

Celtic eye Marc Leonard as summer midfield rebuild gathers pace<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Leonard headed to Tynecastle in January to fill in for the injured Cammy Devlin, a move that paid off big time, as he quickly became a regular in the lineup. While he chipped in with one goal and three assists in 12 games, those stats don\u2019t tell the whole story. His real value lies in how he keeps the ball moving, his smart positioning, and his knack for playing out of tight spots.<\/p>\n

Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder was in the stands at Tynecastle on Monday to see Leonard in action, a clear sign that the race for his signature is heating up. Clubs across Europe are also keeping tabs, and Birmingham won\u2019t even pick up the phone for less than a significant seven-figure fee.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a player that\u2019s impressed a great deal up in Scotland this season; he\u2019s been instrumental for Hearts.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been right up there as one of their most important players in the second half of the season, and he\u2019s a player Celtic will be fully aware of.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven before his move to Hearts, he\u2019s a player who has been on their radar for a while.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s under contract still at Birmingham for another two years so we don\u2019t know what Birmingham\u2019s plans are for Marc Leonard.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure he\u2019s a player that Celtic are looking at, but again, I think there\u2019ll be a lot of competition for his signature if Birmingham are willing to let him move on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leonard actually spent four years in the Hearts academy before Brighton<\/a> snapped him up at 16, and he went on to play 64 times for Birmingham over 18 months before this latest loan. If there\u2019s a knock on his game, it\u2019s that he can sometimes be a bit safe; he doesn\u2019t often drive the ball into the final third, which can limit his impact in attack at the top level.<\/p>\n

Do Celtic actually need Leonard more than people realise?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\"Celtic\"
PETERBOROUGH, ENGLAND \u2013 APRIL 08: Marc Leonard of Birmingham City during the Sky Bet League One match between Peterborough United FC and Birmingham City FC at Weston Homes Stadium on April 08, 2025 in Peterborough, England. (Photo by Cameron Smith\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Celtic<\/a> are making midfield a priority this summer, especially since the engine room is looking a bit thin. There are major question marks over the futures of Reo Hatate and Arne Engels, with both players drawing serious interest from elsewhere. On top of that, there\u2019s the long-term question of who will eventually step up to share the load with Callum McGregor.<\/p>\n

Leonard already knows the Scottish game inside out, making him a safe bet rather than a gamble. He\u2019s a proven quantity in this environment. His high work rate, tidy passing, and ability to help on the counter-attack makes him the ideal profile for what Celtic look for in a central midfielder. Birmingham won\u2019t let Leonard go for cheap, but Celtic have the cash to make it happen. Bringing Leonard in might just be one of the cleverest moves Celtic make all summer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Celtic have put Marc Leonard at the top of their wishlist for the 2026\/27 season, reports Pete O\u2019Rourke. The 24-year-old Scottish midfielder has been shining during a standout loan spell at Hearts from Birmingham City. Celtic scouts have been keeping a close eye on him and plan to watch him throughout the rest of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13963,"featured_media":27926,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27925","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27925","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13963"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27925"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27925\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27925"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27925"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27925"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}