Idah a rough diamond in need of polishing... but give him service and he will get goals

IT’S just over three weeks since the close of the summer transfer window, and the hopes of the Jack Army remain high heading into a packed winter schedule.

- TOM COLEMAN Football Writer

Many are understandably holding up this recruitment drive as one of the best the club has seen since relegation from the top flight, but the positivity around City’s activities in the market are perhaps already giving way to rising expectations.

Out of all the 12 players brought on board, it's new striker Adam Idah that probably encapsulates that feeling best.

It’s believed the Swans shelled out around £6m for the 24-year-old, while reports elsewhere have suggested his package at the Swans will see him lavishly rewarded for his move to south Wales.

There's an acceptance he will need a bit of time to get up to speed, but given the eye-catching outlay spent on him, expectations for him to hit the ground running are already high.

As Michael Gannon, Celtic writer for the Daily Record, explains, it’s a similar dynamic to the one shortly after his move to Celtic was made permanent.

“Adam was one of the great enigmas at Celtic, to be honest,” he said.

“When he arrived in the January on loan, it was kind of met with universal apathy and there weren't that many that really fancied him.

“But he won them over, and scored some crucial goals. He scored against Rangers at Ibrox and scored a last-minute winner against them in the Scottish Cup final at Hampden.

“As soon as you do that you're an instant hero. So at that point his stock was high.