Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers made a few changes to his playing squad during the recent January transfer window in a bid to improve his options.
The Hoops boss brought in Nicolas Kuhn on a permanent deal from Rapid Wien and Ireland international Adam Idah on loan from Norwich City until the season of the season.
He also allowed a number of players to head out on loan to gain regular first-team football; including Mikey Johnston, who has six goals and one assist in seven starts for West Brom, Hyeok-kyu Kwon, Marco Tilio, and Alexandro Bernabei.
The Northern Irish head coach will be hoping that they all return to Parkhead as better players who can compete for a place within his squad for the 2024/25 campaign.
With this in mind, there is one player out on loan who has thrived for his temporary club since being sent there last summer to spend an entire season playing regular football away from Glasgow.
Bosun Lawal was sent to League One side Fleetwood Town in England and his impressive performances this term suggest that the potential is there for him to emerge as Rodgers' new Wilfred Ndidi, and as an upgrade on Tomoki Iwata.
Wilfred Ndidi's defensive brilliance for Rodgers
The Nigeria international made 138 appearances for the Northern Irish boss during their time together with Leicester City down south, and only six Foxes players played more times under him.
Ndidi largely operated at the base of the midfield as a defensive anchor in front of the back four, as he showcased his ability to win duels and cut out opposition attacks at an impressive and efficient rate.
The 27-year-old titan was also deployed as a centre-back at times under Rodgers, which speaks to both his defensive quality and his superb versatility.
During their last full Premier League season together, Ndidi made 19 league appearances and caught the eye with 7.1 duels won per game, including 2.2 aerial battles per match, during the 2021/22 campaign.
He won 54% of his physical contests in total, and won possession back 0.6 times per outing, which shows that he came out on top more often than not against opposition players.
The Nigerian ace also ranked within the top 3% of Premier League midfielders for tackles won (3.34) per 90, and the top 2% for clearances (3.0) per 90, as the Foxes giant was one of the most active defenders in his position within the division.
Ndidi only completed 80% of his attempted passes that term with 0.1 key passes per game and zero assists to his name, which shows that the Leicester star did not offer too much on the ball.
Why Bosun Lawal could be Rodgers' next Wilfred Ndidi
Lawal joined Celtic from Watford as a centre-back and started the 2023/24 campaign with Fleetwood at the heart of their defence but has emerged as a defensive or central midfielder.
Like Ndidi, the 20-year-old star has the quality to either drop into the backline to start as a central defender or to play at the base of the midfield to protect the backline.
He has made 35 appearances in League One for Fleetwood so far this term and showcased his impressive defensive qualities in both positions.
Lawal has won 6.0 duels per game, including 2.7 aerial battles per match, and won 62% of his physical contests in total. This shows that he is a dominant force in the middle of the park who is strong in the air – with a success rate of 75% in aerial duels – just like Ndidi.
The Celtic loanee has a way to go before he can claim to be as good at tackling, however, as the Fleetwood star has only won 1.8 tackles per game. He has, though, made an impressive 3.1 clearances per outing, which puts him on par with the Leicester gem's displays under Rodgers during the 2021/22 campaign.
These statistics suggest that both players are similar in what they do out of possession as they both compete to win plenty of duels, are dominant in the air, and make a lot of clearances by being in the right place at the right time to cut out dangerous attacks from the opposition.
Lawal has, however, offered quality on the ball with four goals, five 'big chances' created, and 0.5 key passes per game for his side, which suggests that the Ireland U21 international could offer more in possession than Ndidi did for the manager at the King Power.
Why Bosun Lawal could be a Tomoki Iwata upgrade
Iwata has emerged as a first-team regular for the Hoops this year and has played at the base of the Hoops midfield, with the likes of Callum McGregor, Paulo Bernardo, and Matt O'Riley playing either side of him at times.
The Japanese maestro has caught the eye with a pass accuracy of 92% across his 11 appearances in the Scottish Premiership, which shows that he rarely gives the ball away when attempting to find a teammate, but has left a bit to be desired with his defensive work.
He has lost 56% of his duels in the division so far this season, and has only won 1.6 battles per game. This suggests that opposition players have found it too easy to get the better of him at times, whilst the 26-year-old gem is also not putting himself about the park enough to compete in many duels.
Appearances
35
11
Big chances created
5
1
Goals
4
1
Key passes per game
0.5
0.6
Tackles per game
1.8
0.7
Interceptions per game
0.7
0.4
Ground duel success rate
55%
38%
Aerial duel success rate
75%
67%
As you can see in the table above, Lawal, who has been dubbed a "powerhouse" by analyst @HCfootball01 on X, has significantly outperformed Iwata in a host of key defensive metrics, whilst also offering more at the top end of the pitch.
The Fleetwood titan could dominate opposition forwards in a way that the current Celtic regular has not been able to, due to his exceptional success rate in physical duels – particularly in the air – to prevent teams from exposing the Hoops defence.
You could point to the fact that the 20-year-old gem is playing in League One but Matt O'Riley was signed directly from that league with MK Dons and has racked up 19 goals and 31 assists in 111 games for the club to date, which suggests that players can make the jump from the third tier in England to the Premiership.
Lawal, who also has plenty of time to develop and improve at the age of 20, is more combative and effective as a defender in the middle of the park in comparison to Iwata, which is why he could emerge as an upgrade on the Japanese midfielder and become Ndidi 2.0 for Rodgers at Parkhead.
