There are some people whose opinions on Celtic deserve a little more attention than others, and when Aiden McGeady speaks about a winger, I believe we should listen.

Why? Because McGeady was not simply another player who happened to wear the famous green and white hoops. He was a winger himself, a gifted one at that, and somebody who understands exactly what the position demands at Celtic.

He knows the expectations. He knows the pressure. He knows that playing wide for Celtic is not simply about receiving the ball, keeping possession and making sure you do not lose it.

Sometimes you actually have to do something with it.

So when McGeady describes Sebastian Tounekti as “too one-dimensional”, says that he slows the game down too often and questions when Celtic are actually going to see his talent consistently, I am not inclined to dismiss him as another former player having a wee moan from the sidelines.

I would rather ask a more interesting question. What is McGeady seeing that Celtic themselves need to recognise?

It is one thing for supporters sitting in the stands to decide that a winger is not doing enough. It is another thing entirely for somebody who actually played that position, and played it very well, to identify problems in the way another winger approaches the game.

McGeady understands the movement, decision-making and technical ability required.

Perhaps most importantly, he understands the courage involved.

Because playing as a winger requires you to take risks.

You are going to lose the ball sometimes. You are going to attempt a dribble which does not work. You are going to hit crosses which are cleared and make decisions which look ridiculous five seconds later. You also have to be courageous because wingers are marked everywhere and here at Celtic is no exception but to say this; ours don’t get protected from thuggery the way others do.

No winger in football history has completed every dribble, delivered every cross perfectly or made the correct decision every single time. But there is a difference between trying something and failing and becoming so predictable that defenders know exactly what you are going to do before you do it.

That appears to be McGeady’s concern with Tounekti.

And I think it is a fair one.

Celtic supporters want attacking football. We want pace, creativity, intelligent movement and players willing to take defenders on rather than repeatedly checking backwards and returning the ball to somebody standing roughly where it came from.

Yes, modern football requires much more from a winger than simply putting your head down, beating the full-back and throwing a cross into the box.

But there still has to be a point to all of this.

There still has to be danger.

When Celtic recruit a winger, I expect him to possess qualities capable of changing a match. I want somebody who can stretch the opposition, create space, deliver a dangerous final ball or produce something individually when the collective approach has ground to a halt.

That does not mean Tounekti is a bad footballer.

McGeady himself acknowledges that there is talent there.

The question is whether Celtic are seeing enough of it.

That is an entirely legitimate question when you consider what this club expects from its attacking players.

We cannot spend our time talking about European progress, domestic dominance and the standards Celtic should aspire to and then suddenly become terribly delicate when somebody asks whether an individual player is actually meeting those standards.

That would be rather convenient, wouldn’t it?

Supporters are expected to turn up, spend their money and back the team.

The manager is expected to win football matches.

Players are expected to perform.

And the recruitment department should surely be expected to provide those players in the first place.

That is where McGeady’s comments become more interesting to me.

Because if Celtic have a problem on the wing, the answer cannot indefinitely be to hope the existing options magically develop into exactly what we need.

Players deserve time.

They deserve coaching.

They deserve patience, particularly when they are adapting to a new club, a new country or a different level of expectation.

But patience should never become an excuse for pretending an obvious weakness does not exist.

If Tounekti can improve the areas McGeady is talking about, brilliant. That is what the coaching staff are there for. Help him become less predictable. Help him make decisions quicker. Encourage him to take risks and hurt defenders.

But if those improvements do not come, Celtic cannot simply continue waiting forever because everybody desperately wants the signing to work.

Football does not operate like that.

Competition for places should be ruthless.

If another player offers more, he should play.

If none of the existing options consistently offers what the team requires, then the recruitment department needs to find someone who does.

This is not particularly complicated, although Celtic have occasionally displayed a remarkable talent for making straightforward footballing decisions resemble advanced mathematics.

I would much rather see the club acknowledge a weakness and address it than spend months explaining why supporters should stop noticing it.

And of course, signing another winger is not automatically the answer.

We have seen enough Celtic transfer windows to understand that buying somebody and improving the team are not necessarily the same thing.

The important part is identifying the right player.

Somebody with the pace, technical ability, intelligence and mentality to play for Celtic.

Somebody prepared to receive the ball and make something happen.

McGeady knows what that looks like because he did it himself.

Celtic do not need comfortable conversations about players.

They need productive ones. Ruthless even. If McGeady’s criticism highlights a genuine weakness in Tounekti’s game, then the coaching staff should address it.

If he improves, everybody wins.

If he does not, the manager has decisions to make.

And if Celtic eventually conclude that the squad lacks enough quality in that position, then the recruitment department has one too.

Because the standard should never change depending on who is being judged.

Celtic need wingers who frighten defenders.

They need players prepared to create, attack space and take responsibility.

McGeady understands that better than most.

Perhaps Celtic should listen.

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