Celtic’s Head of Scouting Operations agrees to join Swansea

In partnership with

The Celtic Star

·11 November 2025

Celtic’s Head of Scouting Operations agrees to join Swansea

According to Stephen McGowan at The Herald Celtic’s Head of Scouting Operations Jay LeFevre has agreed a move to Swansea City, becoming the latest figure to depart the club amid growing scrutiny of its football operations…

Jay LeFevre leaves Celtic. Photo Scottish Sun

LeFevre, hired from Arsenal in 2019 by then–Head of Football Operations Nick Hammond, has overseen Celtic’s scouting system for some six years.

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His remit included compiling reports on transfer targets and managing the club’s network of scouts. Over that time, he worked under Neil Lennon, Ange Postecoglou, and Brendan Rodgers, each with varying degrees of success in the transfer market.

McGowan notes that LeFevre’s departure comes on the heels of Chief Executive Michael Nicholson’s public acknowledgment of failures in the summer transfer window and his promise of a structural review. Nicholson admitted in the club’s recent financial statement.

Celtic Director Brian Wilson with CEO Michael Nicholson at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock v Celtic, 14 September 2025. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

“This year, regretfully we did not achieve all of our objectives in the transfer window. We share and understand our supporters’ disappointment and frustration, and we will continue to seek to review and improve our strategy and execution as the market continues to evolve.”

Rodgers’ own frustrations with the recruitment process were well documented before his resignation, his criticisms of transfer strategy echoing the discontent among supporters after another underwhelming window and a premature Champions League exit.

Brendan Rodgers on the Celtic bench at Dens Park. Dundee v Celtic. 19 October 2025. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

When Rodgers departed, around three quarters of his coaching staff followed him out the door, a move that resembled solidarity more than insubordination, underlined by John Kennedy’s decision to leave Celtic, after 27 years service in varying roles at the club.

That suggested a shared belief among Rodgers’ backroom team that the issues ran deeper than the dugout, and that the working environment within Celtic’s football structure had become increasingly strained.

LeFevre’s move to Swansea, where reports suggest manager Alan Sheehan is set to be sacked, follows a recent pattern of Celtic-linked figures heading to south Wales. Adam Idah and former Pathways boss Darren O’Dea have already made the same journey.

Darren O’Dea at Celtic Park. Photo Celtic FC

Whether this is coincidence or a sign of systemic upheaval at Parkhead is harder to determine. It could represent a straightforward career move for LeFevre, or it could signal deeper realignment, as the club reviews its football structure following Rodgers’ exit.

For all the talk of process and strategy, it’s difficult to argue Celtic’s recruitment machine has delivered to plan. LeFevre may well have scouted diligently, but in too many cases the club seemed to end up pursuing third or fourth-choice targets, although much of the issue seemed to be at the dealmaking end of the transfer business, rather than solely talent identification.

If LeFevre’s exit is a further symptom of dysfunction, the real question is whether those responsible for overseeing the system, the board and executive leadership, are prepared to face scrutiny themselves. Otherwise, the reshuffling of roles may amount to little more than smoke and mirrors, the illusion of reform masking the same deeper flaws.

Niall J

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