Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers was backed by the board in the recent summer transfer window, as he brought in a host of new signings to bolster the squad.
Arne Engels, Adam Idah, Paulo Bernardo, Auston Trusty, Luke McCowan, Viljami Sinisalo, and Kasper Schmeichel arrived on permanent deals, whilst Alex Valle signed on loan from Barcelona.
Trusty joined from Championship side Sheffield United and has started the last three games in all competitions, amid Cameron Carter-Vickers’ absence, alongside Liam Scales.
He has been picked ahead of centre-back Maik Nawrocki to partner the Ireland international in these recent games, and it appears as though the Hoops have had a mare with the Polish flop.
How much Celtic paid for Maik Nawrocki
In the summer of 2023, Carl Starfelt left to join Celta Vigo and that left Rodgers in need of reinforcements at the back, which led to the signing of Nawrocki from Legia Warsaw.
The Scottish giants reportedly splashed out a fee of £4.3m to sign the 22-year-old colossus, seemingly in the hope that he would partner Carter-Vickers at the back.
Appearances
25
Pass accuracy
86%
Tackles + interceptions per game
2.5
Ground duel success rate
53%
Aerial duel success rate
61%
As you can see in the table above, Nawrocki played regular football for Legia Warsaw in the Ekstraklasa during the 2022/23 campaign, showcasing his dominant defensive work and his comfort in possession.
Unfortunately, though, the right-footed titan did not translate that over to the Scottish Premiership for Celtic and his value has plummeted during his time in Scotland.
Maik Nawrocki's current market value
At the time of writing (10/10/2024), Transfermarkt has his current market value at €3m (£2.5m) and that is less than the £4.3m that the Hoops paid for him just over a year ago.
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Meanwhile, Scales has a market value of €3.5m (£2.9m) on Transfermarkt, which means that the Irish star is currently more valuable than the Polish dud.
That makes sense when you consider that the former Aberdeen loanee was the player who stepped up to become Carter-Vickers’ centre-back partner under Rodgers last season, rather than Nawrocki.
Scales went on to play in 34 of the club’s 38 Premiership matches, starting 33 times, and started all six of Celtic’s games in the Champions League. His performances even earned him a place in the PFA Scotland Team of the Year, alongside Carter-Vickers.
Nawrocki, meanwhile, only made ten appearances in the league, starting seven times, and did not make a single outing in the Champions League, which means that he has rarely been seen in a Hoops jersey since his arrival last year.
The 23-year-old flop has also yet to feature in the league or in Europe this term and has been an unused substitute four times, with one appearance off the bench against Falkirk in the League Cup, as Carter-Vickers, Scales, and Trusty have all been preferred ahead of him.
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Therefore, Celtic messed up with the signing of Nawrocki from Legia Warsaw as they paid £4.3m for a player who is not currently one of the top three first-choice options for Rodgers in his position, and his value has plummeted well below that price over the last 14 months.