Pundit Gordon Dalziel insists Celtic were correct to hold onto James McCarthy during the January transfer window.

The 33-year-old, who last played for the Scottish Champions against Motherwell in October 2022, was the subject of interest from Greek side Volos.

They approached the Hoops about a possible loan move but the offer was rejected and Dalziel has given his thoughts on why the Republic of Ireland international has remained at Parkhead.

"You look at James McCarthy just quickly," he told Clyde One Superscoreboard. "I think that they rejected it because the club looked at the situation that was going to take him on loan and tried to use it to their advantage.

"If you’re going to take a player on loan, you’ve got to contribute something to it and I think that Celtic felt that the club wasn’t prepared to do that. 

“So what is the point in putting a player out there and recouping nothing for him and not getting any wages or nothing towards his wages and that’s why Celtic have probably dug their heels in."

McCarthy has featured just 27 times for the club since joining in the summer of 2021.

READ MORE: Celtic's Nicolas Kuhn must start vs Hibernian and here's why

Meanwhile, 

Reo Hatate has broken his silence after suffering a major injury blow while on international duty.

The Celtic midfielder has been sidelined for up to six weeks after an issue with both of his calves.

Hatate, 26, had been called up with fellow Celtic star Daizen Maeda. However, his tournament took a turn for the worse as he limped off against Bahrain.

Japan were later knocked out of the tournament in the round of 16 as Iran pipped the Samurai Blue 2-1.

Now, Hatate has reflected on the tournament and his injury blow as he posted on Instagram: "I'm lacking in contributing to the team. Accept the reality and keep fighting.

"Thank you for supporting Asia Cup."