Joe Hart thought he was “special”: Celtic may rue selling their new Doak for just £3m

There is a dispute in Scottish football circles concerning the dearth of academy graduates in the Scottish Premiership, with Celtic being one of several teams deficient in this area.

Only four players under the age of 20 have made more than eight starts in the top flight across all clubs, with no Rangers or Celtic player making more than six.

This season, no Scottish players aged 20 or younger have started a league match for the Hoops under Brendan Rodgers. Alex Valle, with seven starts, is the only player of any country to do so.

It is an issue for the development of young players in Scotland and it may be one of the reasons why teams lose their brightest prospects to teams in England, as Celtic once did with Ben Doak.

How much Liverpool paid for Ben Doak

Liverpool signed the 16-year-old attacker for £600k in the summer of 2022.

By that point, the teenage starlet had came on as a substitute in two Premiership matches but was not offered a start by Ange Postecoglou, so he decided to extend his career down south.

After almost three years, Doak is now a full Scotland international and has made 21 Championship starts on loan with Middlesbrough at the age of 19.

Celtic may regret not retaining the now-worth £30 million player. Last summer, the Hoops happily cashed in on a star who could have been their own version of Doak when they sold Mikey Johnston.

Why Mikey Johnston could have been Celtic’s Ben Doak

The Glasgow-born flanker, like Doak, came up through Parkhead’s academy system, scoring 13 goals and assisting 12 times in 93 appearances across all competitions.

Despite playing at Celtic for eight years, he never played more than 14 league matches in a single campaign, limiting his opportunity to showcase his abilities consistently.

After scoring seven goals in 20 matches on loan with West Brom last season, the Hoops moved him to the Baggies for a reported £3 million sum.

In 19 Championship starts this season, Johnston has generated five ‘big chances’ and five assists, demonstrating his creative influence on the wing.

As shown in the table above, the Ireland international and Doak have performed similarly in a variety of categories in the English second division. They are both direct forwards who constantly strive to create high-quality opportunities for their teammates.

Johnston, a “throwback” winger described as “very special” by former teammate Joe Hart, has the same number of league assists as Engels and more than Luke McCowan and James Forrest (four each).

Celtic may rue their decision to cash in on him last summer, since they appear to have missed out on their own version of Doak, given his ingenuity and dribbling ability.

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