Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - October 25, 2022. Celtic's Moritz Jenz reacts after the match.
Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou was left wanting more from Mortiz Jenz before the defender was ruthlessly axed, according to Anthony Joseph.
The Lowdown: Jenz at Celtic
The 23-year-old centre back joined Celtic on loan in the summer from Lorient, going onto the make 19 appearances for the Bhoys before his loan was cut short last month.
It was reported by the Daily Record just days before his exit that the German was enjoying playing at Parkhead and was interested in making his switch to the SPFL champions permanent come the summer.
However, his loan deal was abruptly ended and he was sent back to Lorient owing to a lack of game time (via Daily Record) which saw the centre-back fail to appear following the World Cup break, Jenz has since joined Bundesliga side Schalke 04.
The Latest: Jenz exit
Speaking on The Celtic Exchange podcast, Sky Sports News journalist Joseph revealed his surprise that the German’s loan spell had ended, claiming Postecoglou’s ambition to build a Celtic team capable of challenging in the Champions League led to Jenz’s exit, saying:
(6:07) “I thought I wouldn’t be surprised, so if Celtic had been perhaps briefing to say that they were looking to make Jenz’s loan permanent, because they have the option to make his move permanent.
“Or even just to say this is someone we’re looking to buy at the end of the season, like they were doing with Jota and (Cameron) Carter Vickers, it was quite clear, that sounds like we’re going to trigger that option.
“I thought he was doing okay, but as someone connected to the club told me, okay is not enough for Ange (Postecoglou).
“So he wants real quality, frailties were shown defensively in Europe this season despite some really good performances, I guess Ange feels he needs to be quite ruthless in terms of selection and recruitment to have any chance of competing in the Champions League.”
The Verdict: Lost his spot
Jenz had enjoyed an extended run in the Celtic side at the beginning of the season, playing 11 of the side’s first 15 SPFL games, even bagging twice in his first two appearances, alongside completing the 90 minutes in all of Celtic’s Champions League group stage games.
The Bhoys endured a tough European group with current holders Real Madrid joined by regular Champions League sides RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk, eventually managing just two points in six games with both being 1-1 draws against the Ukrainian outfit.
With Joseph explaining that the Australian’s target of building a team capable of making a go of it in the Champions League group stages, unlike this season, it’s not massively surprising to see Jenz cast aside for that reason given he played every minute in a campaign that saw them concede 15 goals, showing he’s not good enough to feature at that level.
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