THE start to John Guidetti's Celtic career has been explosive and electrifying, which is stating the obvious.
The length of it remains a mystery. Exactly seven weeks ago Guidetti was just a name, not yet the little phenomenon he has become. He scored his first goal for the club on September 13 and has already raced to eight in eight appearances. Guidetti, an effervescent, charismatic young guy bubbling with confidence, is entitled to strut around like the king of Parkhead. Supporters are falling at his feet, but they are anxious about what is being done to make him more than just a loan player who blows in and out of the club far too briefly.
Manager Ronny Deila knows he has landed a natural star in this 23-year-old on loan from Manchester City. Guidetti is out of contract at the end of the season, when he would be available for free (having passed the age at which even a development fee would be due to City for rearing him). City are understood to want £5m if Celtic want to make the move permanent in January - it would allow the Scottish champions to tie him up before he is free to speak with other clubs from January 1 - although Deila did not recognise or accept that figure when it was put to him yesterday.
Celtic want Guidetti to stay, of course. If Guidetti feels the same the issue will come down to whether the club can meet his wage demands. There have been exploratory talks between the parties and Deila yesterday expressed cautious optimism that Guidetti could be accommodated without breaking the club's wage structure. "I think he has to go into our economy. I think that's possible. It's important that he is performing well here and feels loved and wanted. To play at Celtic when that happens means you can't be in a better place. I've said to John that he needs stability to play.
"It's also important to know that Celtic - if you take away the money - is still one of the biggest clubs in the world. If you come here you have everything. You have the stadium, supporters, fantastic pitches, good staff, history and you have European football. Here you have what you need to get to your potential.
"He loves football. Money is important but that comes because of good performances. If this was the other way round, it would never happen. The best players always think 'football development' then the money comes as a consequence. I've seen it the other way around many times before and when that happens it finishes very quick.
"He is enjoying every minute here and he is wanted here. He is also loved here. It's also important that he is not just giving something to us, but we are giving something to him. I think he sees that he is performing well now because the team are performing too. Those things are important when young players are picking the next stage of their career and the next club.
"Money is always a key factor. Everyone has to know we really want John to stay. I've talked with him and he loves being here. He loves the club and we need to do everything we can now to make his move a permanent one. Talks with John are going on all the time. He had been injured for a long time and there was a question mark over that. But now things are going well and we hope we can keep him here. It is perfect for the club and the way we want to play."
Under the terms of the loan deal with Celtic, City cannot sell Guidetti to any other club in January. That gives Celtic an advantage, up to a point, although clubs in the Barclays Premier League, the Sky Bet Championship or major leagues around Europe can very easily let him know that they could pay far higher wages. "We will see what's happening," said Deila. "We have an experienced leader in Peter [Lawell, the chief executive] who has been through this hundreds of times."
Guidetti's goals have been directly responsible for three league points - he scored both in the 2-1 win against St Mirren - while all the others came in more comfortable wins in the Premiership and League Cup. The midweek hat trick against Partick Thistle was the foundation of the 6-0 rout which swept Celtic into tomorrow teatime's League Cup semi-final draw.
They could be paired with Aberdeen or Dundee United, although those possibilities have been enthusiastically disregarded by those who yearn for a meeting with Rangers.
Deila handled that possibility with some skill yesterday, carefully diverting talk of an Old Firm semi-final - it would be the first Celtic-Rangers game since April, 2012 - by stressing his focus was on winning the League Cup en route to a domestic treble. "If we win the treble the history books will show that we won the treble - not that we beat Rangers. So you have to see a bigger picture than that. If that [draw] happens, of course, it is a fantastic thing, something that Glasgow has that is huge and fun and good, I look forward to that.
"For me to be historic and take the treble, as not many have done before, is a dream. So we have to win the League Cup as well."
He has never attended an Old Firm game in his life, and seemed faintly amused about being asked to discuss one that may never actually happen. There are three months of football to negotiate before the semi-finals, starting at home to Inverness Caledonian Thistle tomorrow. For that, and for all other fixtures until January, Celtic will be without Derk Boerrigter, who has had surgery in Sweden to fix a knee problem.
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