Celtic have always had a rich history of producing talented players. The 1967 European Cup winning ‘Lisbon Lions’ team featured an all-Scottish side all born within a 30-mile radius of the club’s stadium, Celtic Park, an incredible achievement. The Celtic B team of the same era, many of which went on to replace the Lisbon Lions, became known as the ‘Quality Street Gang’ and included players such as Kenny Dalgleish, Lou Macari, George Connelly and more who went on to have fantastic careers. More recently, academy graduates have included the likes of Kieran Tierney, Liam Miller and Aiden McGeady as Celtic continue to name several academy graduates in the first team squad every year.
The Celtic Youth Academy have enjoyed lots of success in giving young players the support and developing the skills required to become professional soccer players. Since 2000/01, it is believed that one in three Celtic Youth Academy players have gone on to become professional soccer players.
