Greg Taylor welcomes Celtic signing talk and increased competition

Celtic defender Greg Taylor has said he isn’t rattled by talk that the club may sign a new player in his position, believing competition will help the team improve.

The left-back has returned to the first team after surgery on a shoulder injury, but ahead of the transfer window opening next month, there has been talk that Celtic may return to the Japanese market for signings following the success of Kyogo Furuhashi. One position the club may strengthen is the left side of defence.

Taylor shrugged off the potential threat to his first team position and said he doesn’t pay any attention to transfer speculation.

“There’s always going to be competition in every place, given the size of this club,” he said. “It’s normal.

“Every player needs to relish it and hopefully it brings the squad stronger.

“We’ve got so many games there’s no time to check what is being said. We’ll be linked with a number of players. Some will be true, some will be false. It’s part and parcel of the game.

“We do look forward to having extra reinforcements and it’s a strong squad as it is. There’s a lot of boys pushing to play already in the building. If we add to that it’ll be more competition and it can only improve us.

“Competition drives the standard through the roof. Even if it’s in training, the manager is a big believer in that. Even for the boys who aren’t playing, the training has to be right throughout the week. It keeps the levels high for the game on the Saturday.”

Taylor arrived from Kilmarnock in 2019 and has recently signed a new contract with Celtic, committing his future until 2025. He says he’s thriving under Ange Postecoglou and is just delighted to be back in the team after the frustration of being sidelined through injury.

“I’ve been here two-and-a-half years now and I love it here,” he said.

“I love playing for the club. There’s pressure every week but the type I enjoy. I was desperate to be back out there. For the 11 weeks I was out it was tough to watch.

“The manager’s been different class since he came in, especially for myself. It’s been a new way of learning to play and one that I’ve enjoyed.

“There’s nothing worse than being on the sidelines and thankfully the boys have put in a good run while I’ve been out injured. It was nice to continue that when I returned on Sunday.”