Defender on the agenda for Rodgers

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers says he will be looking to bolster his defensive options when the transfer window reopens in January.

The Scottish champions have struggled with injuries at the back this season as Dedryck Boyata, Erik Sviatchenko and Jozo Simunovic have all been sidelined at crucial points.

Rodgers has had to use midfielder Nir Bitton as a makeshift centre-half on occasion and the Northern Irishman has confirmed he will be looking to bring in a new defender in the New Year.

“There is no doubt, for sure, we need to get another centre-half and that’s something we are looking at,” said Rodgers, as reported by the Evening Times.

“We have really good centre-halves – but you need to have them available. And availability is one of the huge things for me.

A player needs to be available to play games. “So there is no doubt it’s a position we are looking at.

It’s something where, hopefully, going forward we won’t have the same issues we’ve had over the last couple of pre-seasons which have been difficult for us.”

Celtic head to Ross County on Saturday and they are 1.22 to claim a win or 8.00 to claim a 2-0 win in the Price Boosts (max bet £/€20).

Rodgers could be tempted to rest a few key players against the Staggies ahead of next week’s Champions League trip to Paris Saint-Germain and the League Cup final against Motherwell the following weekend at Hampden Park.