Celtic lost a huge talent in the recent summer transfer window when they decided to cash in on Nicolas Kuhn by selling him to Italian side Como for a fee of £16.5m.
The German winger has endured a difficult start to life in the Serie, failing to score or assist a goal in any of his first five matches in the division, but his time at Parkhead suggests that the best is yet to come.
Celtic signed the left-footed star from Rapid Vienna in the January transfer window at the start of 2024, and his best form for the club came after a difficult start to life in Glasgow.
How Nicolas Kuhn saved his Celtic career
The former Bayern Munich and Ajax trainee produced three goals and three assists in 18 appearances in the second half of the 2023/24 campaign, including one goal and one assist in the cup, per Transfermarkt.
Kuhn needed time to adapt and adjust to the intensity of Scottish football and the pressure of playing for Celtic, though, and his best performances for the club came after that initial period of adaptation.
In his full season at Parkhead, the 25-year-old star racked up an eye-catching return of 21 goals and 15 assists in 51 appearances in all competitions, per Transfermarkt, which shows that he found his feet in Scotland to deliver consistent performances.
Kuhn is, therefore, the poster boy for why supporters and pundits alike should perhaps give some players more time to adapt to life at Celtic if they do not hit the ground running.
With this in mind, the Scottish Premiership champions may be brewing their next version of the German superstar, and it is not Sebastian Tounekti.
The Celtic player who is the next Nicolas Kuhn in the making
Unlike Kuhn, Tounekti has enjoyed a fairly strong start to his career at Parkhead and all but nailed down a place in the starting XI on the left flank, thanks to his exciting wing play after his deadline day move from Hammarby.
The Tunisia international has completed 14 dribbles in five matches in all competitions, per Sofascore, and scored against Partick Thistle in the League Cup.
Meanwhile, Michel-Ange Balikwisha, who joined from Royal Antwerp in the summer, has not had as much success in winning the fanbase over since his move to the club.
After the 3-2 win over Motherwell, Brendan Rodgers explained that it has “all been a wee bit of a blur” for the Belgian forward since he moved to Parkhead, which suggests that he may be suffering from the same adaptation issues that Kuhn had at first.
|
Michel-Ange Balikwisha |
24/25 Pro League |
25/26 Premiership |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
16 |
4 |
|
Shots per game |
1.1 |
0.0 |
|
Goals |
4 |
0 |
|
Key passes per game |
1.6 |
0.5 |
|
Big chances created |
7 |
1 |
|
Assists |
3 |
1 |
|
Successful dribbles per game |
0.4 |
0.0 |
As you can see in the table above, Balikwisha’s statistics for Royal Antwerp in the Pro League last season suggest that he has more gears to find in Glasgow, as he has struggled at the top end of the pitch for Celtic so far.
The young forward did deliver a fantastic assist for Daizen Maeda’s winner against Motherwell in the Premiership last weekend, his first goal contribution for the club, and that could be the moment that he needs to kick on and make a name for himself at Parkhead.
Balikwisha, who was described as an “exciting” player by Rodgers, has been a bit too timid in his early outings for the Hoops, as evidenced by no shots and 0.5 key passes per game across four matches.
The Belgian attacker needs to show more conviction and drive in his performances on the wing, as he did in the Pro League with his former club, and not worry about making a mistake or the crowd getting on his back.
If he can step up to produce fearless performances, then his form from Belgium may translate to Scotland. He could follow in Kuhn’s footsteps by hitting his stride in front of goal after a difficult start to life in Glasgow.
