It was little over six months ago that Scottish champions Celtic were flying high under Brendan Rodgers, having come agonisingly close to securing a place in the last-16 of the Champions League.
A last-gasp poke from Alphonso Davies ultimately put paid to those hopes, but the Glasgow side could hold their heads high having been so impressive on that February night in Munich, spearheaded by an attacking trio of Daizen Maeda, Nicolas Kuhn and the returning Jota.
Yet another Premiership title has been sealed since then, although all is not well at Parkhead – even despite another unbeaten start to the new domestic season.
Having slipped to Scottish Cup final heartbreak back in May, the big occasion has got the better of those in Hoops in 2025/26 already, crashing out at the hands of Kairat Almaty in Champions League qualifying, prior to playing out a drab draw with rivals Rangers at the weekend.
Kuhn has followed Kyogo Furuhashi out the door. Adam Idah was sent packing on deadline day. The transfer war chest at least looked to be rather healthy, although someone appears to have lost the keys.
Scrambling around to replace such notable figures at the climax of the window is not a good look for those in Glasgow, with a weary Rodgers left to make do with what he’s got.
That said, might one of his late arrivals be set to follow in the footsteps of a certain Scott Sinclair?
Scott Sinclair's stunning Celtic record
For the likes of Kuhn and Matt O’Riley – among a multitude of others – Celtic Park can often provide the perfect springboard to sealing a high profile switch elsewhere, with the Glasgow outfit offering an ideal environment for the best and brightest to be nurtured and developed.
For the likes of Joe Hart, and the aforementioned Sinclair, however, moving north of the border can also be the perfect antidote to a declining career, with the latter man, in particular, taking on talismanic status in green and white.
Having played his “best football” under Rodgers in the past at Swansea City, the Englishman reunited with his former boss in the summer of 2016, following a £3m move from Premier League side Aston Villa.
The fleet-footed winger had scored just nine goals in 45 games at Villa Park, having notably made just 19 appearances during a forgettable spell at Manchester City. A fresh start was needed.
As it proved, right from the outset the then 27-year-old was an instant hit in Scottish football, having ended his first season with a ridiculous tally of 25 goals and ten assists in 50 games in all competitions. Kuhn, for comparison, recorded 36 goal involvements last term under Rodgers.
A further 35 goals and assists followed the next year for Sinclair, with his total time at Celtic yielding 96 goal contributions in just 164 games – just shy of the 104 goals and assists that Kyogo racked up from his 165 outings.
While the ageing star may have ultimately slipped out of favour, amid his January exit to Preston North End in 2020, it’s hard to deny just what a success he was for Rodgers and co.
Perhaps that story could now be set to be repeated?
Why Kelechi Iheanacho can be the next Sinclair
For Kyogo to have been allowed to exit without securing an adequate replacement was bizarre enough. To have let another centre-forward – Idah – depart on deadline day without settling on a suitable solution was frankly egregious.
Left scouring the free transfer market with the window closing, the Hoops hierarchy have made a mess of things once again this summer, with it difficult to see this current squad as anything other than weaker than what it was just a matter of months ago.
Let’s face it, a club of Celtic’s size and stature should not have to resort to feeding off scraps, with there an air of desperation to the last-gasp acquisition of Kelechi Iheanacho.
All that being said, the tale of Sinclair might have provided a shred of hope that the Nigerian – still only 28 and in his “peak” according to Rodgers – can reignite his stale career in Scotland.
“He is such a talented player, with great ability, athleticism and work-rate. He has great experience and he is right in his peak years, so he can be a great signing for us. I am sure he will make a big contribution to the team.”
Much like Sinclair, the once “phenomenal” striker, in the words of Rodgers, has sought refuge with his former Leicester City boss amid a dismal few years, having bounced around at the likes of Middlesbrough and Sevilla with little success.
Those two most recent moves have yielded just four goals from 26 games, with the mercurial left-footer – who has that Etihad connection, like Sinclair – looking far from the player who burst onto the scene at Man City as a teenager.
If – and it is a big if – Rodgers can get a tune out of the struggling striker, however, he could well be onto a winner. Indeed, this is a player who scored 21 times in just 64 senior games in Manchester, alongside a further 61 in 232 games at Leicester.
As noted by Transfermarkt, Iheanacho’s career pomp thus far was during Rodgers’ time at the helm at the King Power Stadium, having scored 43 goals and provided 25 assists in 143 games for the Midlands side.
While Sinclair tops the list for the most goals scored (95) by a player during the Northern Irishman’s managerial career, Iheanacho sits in a respectable eighth place on the list, with a string of esteemed names ahead of him.
Scott Sinclair
95
238
Jamie Vardy
70
157
Luis Suarez
61
81
Moussa Dembele
51
94
James Maddison
49
166
James Forrest
46
216
Daizen Maeda
44
94
Kelechi Iheanacho
43
143
Daniel Sturridge
43
70
If anyone knows how to get the best out of the Man City academy graduate, it is Rodgers, with Parkhead providing the perfect platform for his goalscoring exploits to be rediscovered.
Like Sinclair was back in 2016, the 28-year-old Iheanacho is certainly still young enough to prove a long-term, rather than short-term fix. Who knows, that desperate, late free transfer could even prove to be the latest Celtic bargain.
Fingers crossed…