20 Worst Celtic FC Signings Ever

13. Roy Keane

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A Manchester United legend, Keane’s powers were on the wane when he joined Celtic in the 2004-05 season. Having been released by the Red Devils in November after a series of disputes with Sir Alex Ferguson, Keane officially became a Celtic player when the transfer window opened in January 2005.

Keane’s career in Scotland couldn’t have got off to a worse start, with the Hoops knocked out of the Scottish Cup by Clyde on his debut – a match also remembered for the disastrous debut of Chinese defender Du Wei.

Accustomed to the ultra-professional world of English football, it’s fair to say Keane struggled to adapt to the customs north of the border and as a result, earned himself a place among the worst Celtic FC signings ever

12. Stephane Henchoz

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One of Martin O’Neill’s last signings, the Swiss international defender was brought in as cover for Bobo Balde and Stanislav Varga on a 6-month contract after falling out of favour at Liverpool, where he had won several trophies including the UEFA Cup. However, with Balde and Varga as solid as the Berlin Wall, Henchoz found himself stranded at Checkpoint Charlie, and left the club in the huff only after 4 not-so convincing appearances. One of the worst Celtic FC signings ever, Henchoz went on to better things at Wigan.

11. Eyal Berkovic

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After carving himself a respectable career in the Premiership with Southampton and West Ham, Israeli midfielder Eyal Berkovic was signed by John Barnes in 1999 for a then club-record fee of £5.75 million.

He was an instant hit with the fans, and a double against Rangers, albeit in a 4-2 defeat, justified this. But soon things took a turn for the worst. With the loss of the talismanic Henrik Larsson with a broken leg, Celtic lost momentum and began to draw and lose games unnecessarily, and Berkovic, influential and creative in his early days at the club, seemed lazy and disinterested.

Berkovic was in and out of the side under Dalglish, but when Martin O’Neill took charge, he was on his way, firstly to Blackburn on loan then to Manchester City for £1.5 million. At times, Berkovic showed signs of being capable of being a great Celtic player, but his attitude and demeanour were to be his undoing and he is now only remembered as an expensive flop.

10. Regi Blinker

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Upon selling unsettled Italian striker Paulo Di Canio to Sheffield Wednesday, manager Wim Jansen received £4.5 million-plus Regi Blinker. The Dutch winger spent 3 unsuccessful years at Parkhead, becoming notorious to the fans with his unconvincing and ineffective displays.

His first season was one of frustration and success, as he would pick up League Cup and title winners medals, and be part of the team that stopped 10-in-a-row, but in terms of his performances, he simply was not good enough to wear the colours of Celtic.

Comparisons with Di Canio are unfair due to their different roles, but whereas Di Canio was a fine player for the Hoops, Blinker was a disaster. He gradually faded out of the team over the next 2 seasons and was eventually released to join Dutch side RBC Roosendaal in 2000. A likeable character, Blinker did try hard for the Hoops, but he failed terribly.

9. Wayne Biggins

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Wayne Biggins arrived at Parkhead from Barnsley in November 1993 in a part-exchange deal which saw the South Yorkshire club pick up Andy Payton and £100,000. It was a no-win situation.

He was a reasonable striker in lower-division English football, but just not Celtic class. A good record with Stoke was the selling point, but with his last club (Barnsley) he had achieved little.

He was thrown into a demoralised First XI at Celtic to score goals in a side that struggled to make any. It was a task that he was never going to fulfil. It was too much to ask of him. In a short Celtic career which lasted just four months, Biggins failed to hit the net and headed back down south in March 1994 with former club Stoke kindly paying £125,000.

8. Henri Camara

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Given the unenviable task of replacing the talismanic Henrik Larsson upfront for Celtic, the Senegalese striker arrived on loan from Wolves with a huge weight on his shoulders. Although blessed with blistering pace and a fine eye for goal, Camara just didn’t fit in at Celtic. Encased in an ageing side devoid of ideas, Camara simply added to the gloom with his mediocre showings and his wonderful talent for disappearing in matches. He deservingly earns himself a place among the worst Celtic FC signings ever

Scored a few goals and showed glimpses of what he could do, but never in big matches like the Old Firm games or in the Champions League, and was soon punted back to Wolves half-way through what was supposed to be a season-long loan in which MartinO’Neill paid £1.5 million for him.

7. Tony Cascarino

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Signed from Aston Villa for 1.1 million pounds in 1991, Cascarino was a disaster, despite the heroics of scoring in an Old Firm derby. His first goal came in a game at Hearts and as part of an amazing sequence of events in a six-minute spell, the striker came on as a sub, scored and then got sent off.

He was hopeless on the pitch and had poor ball control, it just didn’t add up how the valuation ever tallied to the amount Celtic paid for him. He was sold to Chelsea in 1992 in a swap deal for Tom Boyd, a deal that Celtic fans celebrated with a huge chorus of “Let’s all laugh at Chelsea“.