Middlesbrough fans will surely be stunned to see recent Celtic transfer update | OneFootball

The Scottish champions have completed the free agent signing of a major Middlesbrough transfer flop.

Celtic have completed the signing of Kelechi Iheanacho on a free transfer, news that will undoubtedly shock Middlesbrough supporters.

2024/25 was a testing season for Boro fans to endure.

Indeed, it was a campaign laden with self-inflicted wounds, consistently throwing away precious points in unique and infuriating ways, a tactical stubbornness that ultimately contributed to Michael Carrick losing his job, and yet astonishingly, still only missing out on the play-offs by four points.

However, it was at the conclusion of the winter transfer window which many Middlesbrough fans now point to as the real watershed moment in that campaign, as many were left feeling as though the club hadn't sufficiently addressed key areas, and bolstered the squad enough to crack the top six - fears that were proven to be valid.

Kelechi Iheanacho had a miserable Middlesbrough experience

As aforementioned, there was a significant amount of discontent on Teesside as the 2025 January transfer window slammed shut, a window that was later revealed in which a major breakdown in alignment between recruitment staff and then-head coach Carrick occurred.

Boro had sold Matt Clarke in the midst of an already injury-hit centre-back room, and failure to replace him inevitably saw Carrick having to field a centre-back pairing of central midfielder Jonny Howson and left-back Neto Borges for multiple games due to having no fit and recognised central defenders.

Right-back and central midfield were also positions that were almost unanimously agreed upon as requiring fresh blood, but Boro failed to add reinforcements in either of those spots.

Meanwhile, the Emmanuel Latte Lath saga dragged on throughout the entire window, before being sold to Atlanta United for £22.5m on 4 February.

That meant that whilst Boro wanted to do a permanent deal for Slovan Bratislava striker David Strelec - who is now a Middlesbrough player having signed on deadline day this summer - Carrick insisted on the late loan capture of Kelechi Iheanacho.

Unbeknownst to him at the time, but in doing so, he'd just driven home one of the final nails in his Riverside Stadium coffin.

Despite having a Premier League, FA Cup and two League Cup winners medals to his name with Manchester City, Iheanacho looked comfortably past his best upon signing for Middlesbrough, having spent the previous two seasons scoring just five league goals for Leicester in each of the 22/23 and 23/24 campaigns.

Having signed for Sevilla in the summer of 2024, the Nigerian international had gone nine La Liga appearances without a goal upon being loaned out to the Teessiders, and it soon became clear that he wasn't going to be the man to fire Boro into the play-offs.

Unfortunately, the 28-year-old looked every bit of a player lacking in match fitness and confidence, and despite being deployed as both a centre-forward and as an attacking midfielder, Carrick just couldn't extract any real quality out of his loanee.

He soon lost the support of the Middlesbrough faithful too, who were undoubtedly and understandably frustrated at the performances they were seeing from their number nine, but were also projecting their feelings of discontent and apathy towards the team, board and coaching staff onto Iheanacho too, as he was the Boro player who took the brunt of fan frustration.

No more obvious was that made when he was met with ironic jeers from the Riverside terraces upon being substituted off for Morgan Whittaker in a home defeat to Leeds in early April, and he would only make one more start for Boro after that night.

In total, Iheanacho made 15 appearances for Middlesbrough in all competitions during the second half of the 24/25 season, scoring just once.

Middlesbrough supporters will be shocked to see Iheanacho land Celtic move

So, it came as little surprise to any Middlesbrough fan to see him hit the free agent market this summer upon the expiration of his contract with Sevilla.

However, they'll now be stunned to see him land a move to another big club in the form of Celtic, given the severity of his struggles on Teesside.

Indeed, the Glaswegian giants have signed him to a one-year deal this week, and Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers is confident he'll be able to get back to his best at Celtic Park.

"I know Kelechi so well and what he can bring to the team," the Celtic manager said of his new signing.

"He is such a talented player, with great ability, athleticism and work-rate. I am sure he will love being at Celtic and I believe our fans will love what he brings.

"He has great experience and he is right in his peak years so he can be a great signing for us. I am sure he will make a big contribution to the team."

It doesn't appear that his signing has gone down particularly well in the green half of Glasgow, with there being no shortage of Middlesbrough supporters telling Celtic fans the tale of his Teesside horror story.

For Iheanacho though, this is an excellent move. It presents the chance for him to silence critics south of the border and skeptics north of it, and with European football on offer to him as well as a huge chance to win domestic silverware, this feels like the last big opportunity for him to salvage his career at a high level.