Why A Season On Loan At Hibernian Would Do A World Of Good For Liam Henderson
Despite some typically bullish comments from the likes of Steven Whittaker, Hibs are in desperate need of reinforcements if they are to challenge for the top two or three in the Scottish Premiership after their promotion from the Championship.
The midfield area, in particular, looks very weak and will see Hibs fall flat if they do not fix it as soon as possible. In going after Liam Henderson of Celtic, not only would the club be getting the type of player they need but would be bringing in what looks to be genuine Scottish Premiership quality.
Furthermore, Henderson is familiar with the club already having spent most of the 2015/16 season on loan in Leith and would slot straight into the current team. He played 48 times for the Hibees last time around, scoring 6 times in all from a deep lying midfield position at Championship level, which is an excellent return.
Though he played 10 times in the Premiership last season and scored once, Henderson is not considered good enough to get into the Celtic side on merit, ahead of the more established first-teamers, at least not yet. So a loan move for the 21-year-old would do him the world of good.
Going to Hibs, aside from how comfortable it would be for him, would also mean he has a chance of competing in the top half of the league and so it would not feel like too much of a drop, at least not domestically. It seems clear that Henderson will not be a major part of Celtic’s Champions League squad should they qualify. So he would be missing little if he left for a while, other than perhaps some reserve games.
Henderson’s career has gone well so far, from Celtic’s under-17’s to the under-20’s, loan spells at Rosenborg and Hibernian, and now 9 caps for the Scotland under-21 team. However, he is at the classic age and stage that often leads to a little stall, when his first team manager cannot quite trust him in a title push or a European campaign, yet he is too good to sit on the bench.
For all parties concerned, a one year loan move to Hibs with the hope of some domestic success would bring Henderson a ton, as well as helping Hibernian in the short-term and Celtic in the longer term.
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