What Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has said about Daniel Cummings' future amid Sunderland & Wolves transfer talk
Sunderland continue to be linked with a potential move for the young Celtic striker
Reported Sunderland target Daniel Cummings was once again on the score sheet for Celtic’s B Team this week, taking his tally for the season to a stunning 23 goals in 21 outings.
The teenage striker netted a superb curled effort against Croatian outfit Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Youth League, but as things stand, still finds himself in contract limbo at Celtic Park. Cummings’ current deal in Glasgow expires at the end of the season, and at the time of writing, it is understood that he is still yet to be offered an extension. As a result, and provided nothing changes between now and January 1st, he will be free to talk to clubs in the new year over potential transfer opportunities. With that in mind, Football Insider reported last month that Sunderland are one of several English sides monitoring his ongoing situation. Alongside the Black Cats, Wolves, Fulham, Ipswich Town and Burnley are also said to be admirers of the young forward.
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But while it is still unclear as to whether or not Cummings will sign a new deal with Celtic, Hoops manager Brendan Rodgers has made some intriguing comments that would seem to suggest he is open to keeping the starlet around for a while to come. Speaking recently about the prospect of Cummings making a step up to first team football, Rodgers said: "I would like to think that I’ve been a coach, throughout my career, who’s always put in young players. If you trace my managerial career - and before that, my 15 years in youth development - I’ve given debuts to players as young as 16, 17, or 18.
“There's so much involved in giving a young player the opportunity to play. It’s not just about scoring goals or performing, it’s your mentality, it’s your professionalism, it’s all these things alongside ability that is what gets you the opportunity, so that’s always something I’ll assess.
"In terms of Daniel’s output, his goals in his games, he’s done very well. But there are a lot of factors I consider when bringing in a young player. Ability is the first thing I look at, but your attitude and application are just as important. Young players will always get a chance here and there’s always a number of factors why they can or can’t get a chance, but the first one’s normally ability. If they’re good enough, they’ll get a chance.
“You’ll hear all these things about Celtic and the pathway. If you’re good enough you’ll get a chance - good enough in terms of your game and good enough in your attitude. If you do that, and you have a little bit of patience, you can become a Celtic player... You’ll get a chance, but you’ve got to have the right traits in order to be a Celtic player.”