Celtic fans have played a crucial role in the club's recent approach to player recruitment, believes Scott Allan.

Allan, who spent four years on Celtic's books, pointed out that the Hoops support have "demanded" that the club make more astute signings, particularly after some disappointing European campaigns in recent years.

The Parkhead faithful have grown increasingly frustrated with players brought in from overseas who have failed to make a significant impact, taking up valuable resources without contributing on the pitch. 

This shift in fan sentiment has seemingly prompted Celtic to adopt a more patient and selective strategy when it comes to new signings. Allan highlighted that the club is now "looking for the right calibre of player" rather than rushing into deals - something that manager, Brendan Rodgers, detailed following Friday night's friendly draw against Ayr United.

The emphasis appears to be on quality over quantity, with the recognition that simply filling the squad with new faces is not enough - the players brought in must be able to make a tangible difference to the team's performance.

Interestingly, Allan also took aim at the lack of pathway for youth academy graduates to gain first team minutes in recent years, suggesting that the club's academy has not produced enough promising talent to supplement the senior squad. 

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"I think the fans have had a massive part in that shift as well," the Kelty Hearts player/coach told BBC Sportsound. 

"They have demanded that because of how Europe has went for Celtic over the last few years.

"Yes, guys have come in; your (Odin Thiago) Holm's, a lot of the guys from the Asian market, some of them have done really well, (Reo) Hatate, Kyogo (Furuhashi), but there's a lot of players there just sitting on the sidelines taking up a lot of money from Celtic and not playing.

"Celtic fans, if you are not doing that, they will want that replaced. 

"Have they got anything coming out the youth system, it's probably not been enough in the last few years. It's not something that's even spoken about as we have in the past.

"So, there's got to be changes. I think Celtic look to be going down the patient route this time and  are looking for the right calibre of player."