Rapid Vienna eye Celtic’s Marco Tilio as Isak Jansson replacement

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The Celtic Star

·19 juillet 2025

Rapid Vienna eye Celtic’s Marco Tilio as Isak Jansson replacement

So, it looks like Marco Tilio’s Celtic career – if we can even call it that – might be heading for the departure lounge — and this time it seems it’s not another loan to Melbourne City…

ALEAGUE JETS CITY, Marco Tilio of City celebrates after scoring a goal during the A-League Men Round 1 match between the Newcastle Jets and the Melbourne City at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle, Saturday, October 19, 2024. Photo DAN HIMBRECHTS

Instead, if today’s Daily Record report is on the money, Tilio could be packing his boots for Austria, with Rapid Vienna sniffing around our Aussie winger. Now, for a player who’s managed just two appearances for the club since that ill-fated Summer of ’23 transfer window, you’d be forgiven for not even noticing he was still on the books.

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Injuries, fitness problems, tactical issues — whatever the reason, Tilio’s never got near the pitch long enough to make much of an impression, never mind an impact, until this pre-season really.

So, it’s a bit of a surprise that it is Rapid Vienna who want to sign him.

Nicolas Kühn of Celtic celebrates after scoring his team’s second goal during the SPL | Premier League match between Dundee United FC and Celtic FC at Tannadice Park on April 26, 2025 . (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The same club that gifted us Nicolas Kühn , who, after an initially rocky start, to his Celtic career, took off like a train last season, prior to Celtic selling him to Como this summer, and earning close to a million for every month he was with the club – and a whole heap of goals and assists in the meantime.

Isak Jansson of SK Rapid during the UEFA Conference League 2024/25 Round of 16 Second Leg match between SK Rapid and FK Borac at Weststadion on March 13, 2025 in Vienna, Austria. (Photo by Christian Hofer/Getty Images)

This is also the same Rapid Vienna who also turned a quick profit flipping Isak Jansson to Ligue 1 after just one year for £10m, after signing him from the Spanish second tier for £250k — a player Celtic had allegedly put in a bid significantly lower than the player was sold for just days later.

So, it begs the question – If Rapid see value in Tilio — are we missing a trick here? This is enough to mess with your head – and question your eyes.

If Rapid Vienna, who clearly know how to spot an undervalued asset, think there’s something in Tilio worth cultivating, maybe we need to look beyond just shifting him off the wage bill.

Marco Tilio arrives at Celtic. Photo Celtic FC

Maybe the wise move this summer isn’t just finding a new winger or three — it’s hiring whoever’s doing the scouting for Rapid Vienna and giving them a desk at in the recruitment team’s office.

Let them loose on our shortlists. Give them a spreadsheet and access to the Wyscout account. Because it’s not the first time they’ve turned heads and a profit in short order with a clever bit of winger business.

In fact, I think I’d be far more excited about bringing in Rapid’s head scout than I am about watching another Summer ‘23 signing being removed from the wage bill – particularly now I’m worried we’re missing a trick with Marco Tilio!

Niall J

Here’s Kieran Tierney speaking to The Celtic Star and a few other Celtic fan media sites…

Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter…

Thank you to everyone who has already pre-ordered the late David Potter’s last ever Celtic book, Celtic in the Eighties, which will be published on the fifth day of September by Celtic Star Books. The link to pre-order your copy is below…

Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter, out 5 September 2025. Available to pre-order now.