da 888： Celtic have seen a number of talented players pass through their academy system over the years and have several graduates in their current first-team set-up.
da aposte e ganhe： Callum McGregor is the club captain, having come through the youth sides at Parkhead, and is a regular starter in central midfield for Brendan Rodgers, whilst Anthony Ralston and Stephen Walsh have also emerged as squad options for the Scottish giants in recent years.
Celtic's most valuable former academy players:
Aaron Hickey
£21.5m
Kieran Tierney
£21.5m
Callum McGregor
£7.3m
Jack Hendry
£2.5m
Ben Doak
£2.5m
Their success with youth players is not a new thing for the Hoops, however, as they have been able to bring through talented prospects for many, many, years.
One young prodigy who the club ended up striking gold with was winger Aiden McGeady as he enjoyed a terrific time with the Bhoys after making the breakthrough at senior level.
Who gave McGeady his Celtic debut?
Former Celtic head coach Martin O'Neill handed the teenage forward his first-team bow towards the end of the 2003/04 campaign and placed his faith in the talented youngster.
The Northern Irish boss had clearly seen enough from the skillful whiz in training and in academy matches to suggest that he would be able to make the step up to playing professional football and was proven to be right.
McGeady scored one goal in four Scottish Premiership appearances at the end of that season as he burst onto the scene and showcased his potential to be a star for the club.
How many appearances did McGeady make for Celtic?
The Ireland international went on to play 223 matches for the Hoops in all competitions after the exciting wizard managed to establish himself as a first-team regular.
He scored nine goals and assisted eight across 49 Premiership games across the 2005/06 and 2006/07 campaigns, to go along with zero goal contributions in six Champions League clashes.
These statistics show that the Irish winger was a semi-regular contributor at the top end of the pitch throughout his first two full seasons as a senior option for the Scottish giants.
McGeady then caught the eye with a stunning return of seven goals and 17 assists in 36 Premiership outings during the 2007/08 term, which means that he was directly involved in a goal every 1.5 matches on average.
The assist machine also scored his first Champions League goal and registered two assists in eight appearances in Europe's premier cup competition that season.
His form, unfortunately, dipped during the following campaign as McGeady only contributed with three goals and six assists in 29 Premiership games, which may have been a concern at the time as there was no guarantee that he would be able to get back to his previous levels.
However, the academy graduate followed that up with an outstanding seven goals and 14 assists in 35 league matches throughout the 2009/10 season, which is an average of one goal involvement every 1.67 outings.
In total, McGeady produced 35 goals and 48 assists in all competitions for Celtic after coming through the academy system under O'Neill.
He showcased his ability to make a huge impact at the top end of the pitch on a regular basis as a match-winner and game-changer for the Scottish giants and the former Hoops boss deserves great credit for unearthing him.
Placing faith in an academy player to come into the senior team takes courage from a manager and in different circumstances McGeady may have ended up moving on after not being given an opportunity by a different head coach, which is why O'Neill deserves plaudits for his work with the Irish ace.
How much did Celtic sell McGeady for?
The Bhoys eventually opted to cash in on the talented maestro in the summer of 2010 for a club-record £9.5m fee to Russian outfit Spartak Moscow.
In fact, that transfer made him the most expensive sale in the history of Scottish football at the time, which is a record currently held by former Celtic stars Kieran Tierney and Jota – who both departed for reported fees of £25m to Arsenal and Al Ittihad respectively.
This shows that O'Neill hit the jackpot for Celtic with McGeady as he played a critical role in turning a player who cost the club £0, as he came through their academy system, into the most expensive player in the club's history in 2010.
Neil Lennon, who was the manager of the Hoops at the time of the sale, hailed McGeady as one of the game's "entertainers" and he was one of the greats in that respect, which is backed up by the fact that the talented magician has his own skill move 'the McGeady spin' named after him.
Where is McGeady now?
The 37-year-old winger currently plays for Ayr United in the second tier of Scottish football after enjoying a strong career in Russia and England before his return to Scotland.
McGeady racked up 13 goals and 28 assists in 93 games for Spartak and earned himself a transfer to Premier League side Everton in 2013.
His time with the Toffees did not go to plan, as he scored once in 43 matches, but the creative maestro ended up with Sunderland, where he was able to thrive.
The experienced forward produced 36 goals and 35 assists in 150 appearances for the Black Cats during his spell at the Stadium of Light before his move back to Scottish football with Hibernian in the summer of 2022.
McGeady, who also scored five goals in 92 games for Ireland at senior level, was never able to replicate his outstanding 17-assist league season for Celtic but did manage 14 assists for Sunderland during the 2020/21 League One campaign.
Overall, there is little doubt that the Hoops played a blinder with the Irish hotshot as they raked in a club-record fee and benefitted from his terrific performances on the pitch for a number of years after unearthing him from the academy set-up for £0.
Rodgers will now be hoping that the next McGeady is currently in the youth team and on the verge of being ready to make their first-team breakthrough over the years to come.