GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - MAY 03: Lewis Dobbie in action for Celtic during the Youth Cup Final match between Rangers and Celtic at Hampden Park, on May 03, 2023, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ross MacDonald/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Young Celtic striker Lewis Dobbie has today signed a new two-year deal with the club. It comes after a few of his fellow academy teammates put pen to paper last week.Dobbie is now the latest to commit his future to the newly crowned Scottish Premiership champions, signing a deal that runs until the summer of 2026.This season, the 18-year-old has successfully broken into Celtic’s B team, putting in some eye-catching displays across the Lowland League, UEFA Youth League, and Premier League International Cup. Dobbie notched 17 goals and two assists in all competitions in 2023/24, displaying his killer instinct in front of goal. A high-potential young striker, monitoring Dobbie’s progress over the next few years should be intriguing.
Thus far this season, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has demonstrated a willingness to include youthful players on the Glasgow first team roster.
Recently, there have been opportunities for players like Rocco Vata and Daniel Kelly, who has played four times in the Scottish Premiership, to make an impression.
Many talented young players from Celtic’s B squad should now be looking to move up and show Rodgers that they have what it takes to regularly feature in the first team.The Northern Irish manager could look to the B team to find an heir to Kyogo Furuhashi, who he has failed to get the best out of this season, in the future, and teenage star Lewis Dobbie is a candidate to fill that role.After his incredible form under Ange Postecoglou in the Scottish Premiership, the Japan international won the PFA Scotland Player of the Year award for the 2022–2023 campaign. Yogo scored an incredible 27 goals in 36 league appearances for the Scottish giants to earn the award, and you could forgive fans for being excited about what he could achieve this season.
The following table illustrates how much the 29-year-old marksman’s performance as a finisher has declined this season compared to the previous one.
In three less division games thus far, he has a staggering 114 more minutes on average per goal, missing five more “big chances” and scoring 16 fewer goals overall.
Dobbie is one player that could eventually replace Kyogo, who is 29 years old. If Kyogo’s play continues to deteriorate in the upcoming months and years, Celtic may need to start considering their options.
