Celtic transfer scouting: Two-footed wing menace the quintessential Jota understudy

Celtic have been moving toward that kind of reputation with their recent additions indicating smart transfer activity, signing young and quality players from niche markets.

Serbia is no different. Here, we look at three Superliga players who could prove to be shrewd acquisitions for Ange Postecoglou...

Nemanja Jović (Partizan)

Nationality: Serbian; Age: 19; Position: Left winger; Preferred foot: Right

With Jota signing permanently this summer, Celtic have a starter on the left wing for the immediate future. However, with Jota’s quality and the team's improvement under Postecoglou, it is only a matter of time before richer clubs consider poaching the Portuguese for big money.

Another young and quality understudy to Jota would be fantastic for Celtic and Partizan’s Nemanja Jović would be a potential candidate for that position.

Born in Bosnia, the youngster has made his international debut for Serbia and is an excellent talent. While Jović is often deployed on the left side of attack for Partizan, he is always looking to come inside and get into good shooting areas, trying to get on the end of moves.

While he is not a high-volume dribbler, he is effective and efficient especially when he is allowed space. His dribbling and his technical ability with the ball make it hard for defenders to challenge him. While he is not lightning quick, he is fast and can cause many problems in the pitch's central areas.

Jović is not a substantial creative threat yet and needs to up his game in that area in terms of volume. However, he can pull off quality passes that open up defences and lead to shooting opportunities. One of his strengths lies in his two-footedness, considering how well he shifts and works with both right and left.

The 19-year-old has a lean stature with a low centre of gravity that helps him turn quickly and get away from tight marking at times. The above images summarise one such instance where he uses this to turn and force the opposition to concede a foul. He wins a lot of fouls for his team in dangerous areas of the pitch due to this and his quick footwork.

As for output, Jović bagged four goals and three assists in 1,969 minutes for Partizan last season while his style of drifting inside makes him a threat in the box. He is also good at finding space when inside the box, making good runs towards the far post in particular and trying to isolate himself from the traffic during set-pieces to pounce on loose balls.

Jović is good at linking up in the central areas of the final third and his tendency to get into the box makes him a significant shooting threat for the opposition. He isn’t shy to take shots outside the box when he sees an opportunity, but he is especially dangerous when allowed room inside the box.

While there is a rawness in various parts of his game, he has the potential to scale up if he moves to a bigger league where there is an emphasis on offensive play.

To conclude, signing Jović would be a smart piece of business from Celtic, adding youth and quality to the squad and fitting well into Postecoglou’s style of play.

Dejan Zukić (Vojvodina)

Nationality: Serbian; Age: 21; Position: Attacking midfielder; Preferred foot: Right

The talented Zukić could soon be on the way out of Serbia. An attacking midfielder by trade, he loves to roam around on the right half-spaces and flanks.

Zukić’s more on the “one who facilitates play” spectrum of attacking midfielders rather than the “goalscoring threat”. As you can observe from the numbers above, the Serbian averages just over 0.2 xA per 90, along with a good volume of penetrative and shot-creating passes.

Even though he boasts high volume numbers in terms of through balls, it is important to note that the numbers correlate well with the quality in Zukić’s case. The two images above are from two different games where he baits a player to close him down and slows down before pulling off perfectly weighted through balls into space.

Zukić reads the opposition players well and scans all the time to facilitate attacks. The Serbian is not very quick, but his on-ball intelligence and technical ability make up for the lack of elite pace. While he is right-footed, he is capable of causing a threat with passing with his weaker left foot too.

His game has a certain flair that shines through in how he moves with the ball and makes passes. Zukić is far from the top percentiles in terms of output, and that is a part of his game where improvements need to made if he is to play for top-tier teams, however it is safe to say that his involvement in the build-up is a big net positive.

The 21-year-old also has a variety of passes in his locker and his decision-making is quite brilliant. He plays it quickly when the tempo of the attack needs to be higher and is also intelligent enough to slow down and pass it around when the team needs more control. He does help his team out with defensive duties as well, with a 63 per cent ground duels win rate.

Coming to his shooting, he generates good power when he lets one go with the inside of his foot and has a good variety of shooting techniques. He will be looking to improve on the six goal contributions in less than 1,750 minutes last season.

Despite his undoubted strengths, Zukić would likely be a squad option for Celtic at the moment due to the strength of the players in there but he is nonetheless one worth keeping an eye on if there are any significant outgoings soon.

Stefan Purtić (Voždovac)

Nationality: Serbian Age: 23; Position: Defensive midfielder; Preferred foot: Right; Height: 6ft 1in

Finally, we will look at a defensive midfielder in Purtić. The 23-year-old could be a solid option on the bench for Celtic.

While they have just signed Aaron Mooy, he is likely not the answer to the defensive midfield role and Purtić would be a cheap option in the long-term for Postecoglou.

Purtić is well-built physically and likes to be active in the midfield third on the defensive half of the pitch. He is someone who likes to collect the ball from his centre-backs and move it on to his team-mates.

The 23-year-old Serbian is good on the ball, always looking to spread the ball into the final third and start off build-ups. While he is not a ball carrier per se, he is excellent at ball progression through his passing.

As you can spot from the numbers above, Purtić attempts over 9.15 progressive passes per 90, with most of his passing being vertical rather than sideways.

Purtić has a good range of passing in his locker and is great at spraying long balls down the flanks or for runners. His long balls are generally well weighted and meet the runner well. He is also good at breaking the lines with his through balls and opening up space in the final third. In addition, he is an accomplished set-piece taker.

The above image is from one of the free kicks he scored lately, where he sat down the ball well and guided it perfectly into the far-right corner. He generates good power while also asserting control on the shots when taking free kicks.

Out of possession, Purtić generally steps in to support his centre-backs. He drops into his penalty area when the opposition moves their attacks down the flanks, looking to cross in. He is tall at 6ft 1in and gets a good jump to clear near post crosses most of the time.

While Purtić has good numbers when it comes to interceptions, he does not always manage to keep possession. Sometimes, he is a bit slow to react and slides to cut a pass out but instead creates a loose-ball situation.

The positive is that he reads situations well in spite of his slow reactions at times and gets on the end of passes and crosses to cut out danger. However, he comes with weaknesses on the duelling side, with a relatively low ground duels win rate.

Purtić is aggressive when duelling, which is a positive in a sense, but the biggest drawback in the aggressiveness of his game is his lack of control while sliding. He tends to go all in, sometimes making dangerous tackles, giving away fouls and getting himself booked for it.

Even in the air, he lacks a confident assertiveness that one would expect from a man of his stature.

While a starting spot at Celtic is a reach at the moment, it is not far from reality if his development carries on the right path.

Purtić could be a decent backup option for Postecoglou and would fit into the style of the Premiership.