Paul Tisdale blameless in this window, his time to shine is this summer

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The Celtic Star

·4 February 2025

Paul Tisdale blameless in this window, his time to shine is this summer

There’s a lot of individuals to blame for our transfer window failings, but Paul Tisdale isn’t one of them, not yet anyway…

Paul Tisdale the manager of Bristol Rovers looks on during the Emirates FA Cup match between Bristol Rovers and Darlington FC at the Memorial Stadium on November 29, 2020 (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

The post mortem is now under way after yet another underwhelming transfer window, and the reasons for our failure are attributed to more than a few well known individuals, and deservedly so, but one man who has a reason to feel aggrieved about any flak aimed his way is Paul Tisdale.

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Doctor on Call

Paul was appointed as Head of football operations back in October and one of his main duties is to look after recruitment, and as we have failed to recruit in an important area this window, some of that blame has been focused on the Englishman who was described when he was brought on board as a ‘football doctor’.

Kyogo signs for Rennes. Photo Rennes FC

Celtic failed to replace Kyogo

Yes we failed to replace Kyogo, but that doesn’t solely lie at the door of Paul Tisdale. How do we know he didn’t produce a list of targets? He may well have and probably did just that, but identifying potential targets and signing them are two separate entities.

Firstly the manager has to agree, and then more decisively it’s down to those who hold the purse strings to get the ball rolling in the shape of arranging a deal. Something that is well and truly out of Paul Tisdale’s hands.

Luis Palma signs for Olympiacos. Photo Olympiacos FC

Summer 2023’s shambles of a window

The last regime led by Mark Lawwell failed to deliver what they were tasked to do and it has been left to Brendan Rodgers to sort that out with none of the players signed in that summer 2023 window proving to be decent deals for the club. Luis Palma is the latest from that round of recruitment to leave the club, joining Olympiacos on loan until the end of the season with the Greek club having an option to buy.

Maik Nawrocki during the Scottish Premiership match between Aberdeen and Celtic at Pittodrie on 13 August 2023. Photo Stephen Dobson PSI

It is only Maik Nawrocki, a £4.3m signing from Legia Warsaw, who remains at Lennoxtown and he is an unused substitute at best under Brendan Rodgers. The Polish defender was the linked with a move to Oxford United las month but nothing materialised.

Paul Tisdale has only been in the door a matter of months, so it’s rather harsh to judge him so soon. Can you really judge a man just months into a new job? It takes time to build something and Paul deserves that chance.

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