Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers officially completed his return to Parkhead earlier this month to replace Ange Postecoglou in the dugout.
The Northern Irishman enjoyed a trophy-laden spell between 2016 and 2019, in which time the 50-year-old boss secured seven pieces of silverware, and he will be hoping for a similar level of success this time around.
He has the summer transfer window to build a squad that is capable of competing on all fronts next season and this should include buying and selling players to improve the side.
Does James McCarthy have a future at Celtic?
One underperforming Hoops dud who Rodgers must brutally ditch before the deadline is Irish central midfielder James McCarthy, who is reported to be of interest to a number of MLS outfits.
The 32-year-old outcast has two years left to run on his current contract with the Scottish giants and the Celtic boss must now green-light an exit for the experienced campaigner by securing his replacement in the form of Kings Kangwa.
It has been reported that the club are one of the sides interested in signing the Red Star Belgrade midfielder this summer for a fee of €3m (£2.6m).
McCarthy, who ex-Scotland forward Frank McAvennie described as "lost", only made two Scottish Premiership appearances in 22/23 after he averaged an unimpressive Sofascore rating of 6.72 across ten league outings in 21/22.
The former Everton man failed to contribute with a single goal or assist in 21/22 but did make 1.3 tackles and interceptions per match in the middle of the park.
These statistics show that the £14k-per-week earner has offered very little on the pitch, as he rarely won possession back and did not change or win games with his attacking play, in the last two seasons. As a result, Rodgers must jettison him from the squad.
Kangwa, who was hailed as a "great ball carrier" by player analyst Chris Kearney, is coming off the back of an exceptional season with Red Star.
He averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.24 across 32 Superliga games and chipped in with eight goals and three assists from midfield. For context, no Hoops midfielder managed more than six strikes in the Premiership.
The 24-year-old ace also made 2.1 tackles and interceptions per clash, only 0.1 fewer per outing than Matt O'Riley and Callum McGregor managed last term (2.2).
Kangwa could provide more quality than McCarthy at both ends of the pitch and put competition on the current first-choice options with his ability to make defensive interventions and punish opposition teams in the final third.
Only Jota (7.45) and Matt O'Riley (7.3) averaged higher ratings in the Premiership for Celtic last term, suggesting that the Zambian has the potential to come in and be one of the club's top performers if he can translate his form over to Scotland.
Therefore, Kangwa could be a fantastic signing for the Hoops and Rodgers must now push to complete a swoop for the 5 foot 6 dynamo as his statistics indicate that he would be a huge upgrade on what McCarthy has offered during his time at Parkhead.
