It is always nice to see an academy player make their breakthrough and impress at first-team level, at any club, and that is why Colby Donovan’s recent emergence at Celtic has been enjoyable.
Injuries to Alistair Johnston and Anthony Ralston left Brendan Rodgers in a difficult position, facing the possibility of playing a player out of position to cover in that position.
Instead of going with a makeshift right-back, the Hoops boss dipped into the academy to provide 19-year-old Donovan with a chance to impress in the first-team in recent weeks.
The Scottish youngster made his first three appearances for the first-team in games against Kilmarnock, Partick Thistle, and Red Star Belgrade, starting all three matches, before being an unused substitute against Hibernian last weekend.
Donovan did not look out of place in those senior outings for the Scottish giants, winning five of his six ground duels without being dribbled past a single time against Red Star Belgrade in the Europa League, per Sofascore.
The teenage full-back will now be hoping to kick on and establish himself in the senior side, as his fellow full-back Kieran Tierney once did when he first broke through.
Celtic's best Scottish talents since Kieran Tierney
The Scotland international first broke through into the first-team in the 2014/15 campaign, having come up through the academy ranks, and he went on to play 170 matches for the club in all competitions.
Tierney, as shown in the graphic above, enjoyed a terrific first spell with Celtic before his £25m move to Arsenal in the summer of 2019, winning five Scottish Premiership titles in the process.
Unfortunately, quality Scottish academy talents have been few and far between since the left-back’s initial emergence in the first-team for Celtic over a decade ago.
Kieran Tierney
£7.8m
Callum McGregor
£4.3m
Mikey Johnston
£2.6m
Jack Hendry
£2.1m
Liam Henderson
£1.7m
As you can see in the table above, Tierney is still the most valuable former academy star to have made at least one start for the club, whilst Callum McGregor, who came through before the defender, is the only other one who is worth more than £3m.
Ben Doak is valued at £14m, per Transfermarkt, but he only played 25 minutes as a substitute for the Hoops before his move to Liverpool, which meant that the Scottish giants did not get to experience much of his talent on the pitch.
To say that Mikey Johnston, a Glasgow-born player who has 17 caps for Ireland, is the most valuable academy graduate since Tierney at just £2.6m is slightly concerning.
Whilst Donovan will be hoping to kick on and be worth way more than Johnston, Celtic may have their biggest Scottish and academy talent since Tierney in a star who is out on loan.
In The Pipeline
Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.
Jude Bonnar is currently on loan in the Championship with Ayr United until the end of the season, gaining vital development and experience that he could bring to the first-team at Parkhead next term.
Why Bonnar may be the best Scottish talent at Celtic since Tierney
As aforementioned, Celtic have not had much success with Scottish talents coming through their academy system to emerge as regular starters in the first-team since Tierney, but Bonnar has the potential to change that.
The Hamilton-born starlet made his senior debut for Celtic in a 5-1 win over Aberdeen in the Scottish Premiership in February of this year, completing 100% (4/4) of his passes in a ten-minute cameo, per Sofascore.
His impressive performances as an attack-minded central midfielder for the B team earned him a chance in the senior side, after a return of ten goals in 55 Lowland League matches in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns combined, per Transfermarkt.
The teenage whiz, who was described as a “dangerous” player by writer John McGinley, also came back from his loan spell with Ayr to score and grab an assist in a Challenge Cup game against Alloa Athletic for the B team last month.
That performance and his overall form at youth level for Celtic show that he has developed a reputation for being a technical and attack-minded midfielder throughout his development in Glasgow.
However, the 19-year-old star’s loan move to the Championship with Ayr United has provided him with an opportunity to show that there is more to his game in the middle of the park.
Rodgers wants well-rounded midfielders who can provide physicality off the ball as well as technical quality in possession, as shown by the types of midfielders who play regularly for him at the moment: Benjamin Nygren, Reo Hatate, and Callum McGregor.
Bonnar’s last two outings in the Scottish Championship for Ayr United show that the versatile star, who can play in midfield or out on the flank, has added bite to his performances in the middle of the park.
Minutes
28
72
Ground duels won
2/3
4/8
Aerial duels won
1/1
2/4
Clearances
2
1
Dribbled past
0x
0x
Possession
1x
10x
As you can see in the table above, the teenage prospect has won six of his 11 ground duels and three of his five aerial duels, without being dribbled past a single time, in the last two matches.
Bonnar is currently being managed by Celtic legend Scott Brown, who knows a thing or two about what it takes to be a number eight for the Hoops, and he appears to be already developing the physical side of his game under the former Scotland international.
It looks as though sending him out on loan to the Championship to be managed by the ex-Celtic captain was a brilliant decision by the club, because the Scotland U21 international is adding physicality to go with his technical quality.
This is why Bonnar, who has delivered one goal and one assist for Ayr United so far this season, could go on to be the club’s biggest and most valuable Scottish talent since Tierney.
The teenage talent already has the technical skills, as shown by his goal record for the B team, but his loan spell shows that he is becoming a complete central midfielder, which could make him an option for Rodgers to integrate into the senior team next season.
It will then be down to Bonnar to produce consistent performances in midfield to show that he is the biggest talent to come through the academy since Tierney.
