Celtic majority shareholder Dermot Desmond brought Brendan Rodgers back to Parkhead for a second stint in charge of the Scottish giants earlier this year.
The Northern Irish manager came in to replace Ange Postecoglou, who joined Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur, and was backed in the summer transfer window with nine new signings.
However, bringing in first-team-ready stars to the squad from other clubs is not the only way that Rodgers can improve the team, as he has previously showcased his ability to bring through young players at Paradise.
Aaron Hickey
£21.5m
Kieran Tierney
£21.5m
Callum McGregor
£7.3m
Jack Hendry
£2.5m
Ben Doak
£2.5m
The 50-year-old tactician hit the jackpot during his first stint in Glasgow as he was able to unearth Ryan Christie's talent and helped the excellent wizard to hit his stride in a Celtic shirt, which led to his market value soaring over the subsequent years.
Who did Celtic sign Ryan Christie from?
Celtic snapped the attacking midfielder up from Inverness in the summer of 2015 at the age of 20 and he was not signed to immediately improve the first-team.
However, the young gem had racked up 35 Scottish Premiership appearances, in which time he scored four goals and provided three assists, throughout the 2014/15 campaign.
The Hoops then decided to loan him back to Inverness for the first half of the season and he caught the eye with three goals and six assists in 15 league outings, which was a significant improvement on his aforementioned output during the previous term.
In total, Christie accumulated 76 first-team appearances for the club and contributed with ten goals and nine assists in all competitions.
However, his return to Parkhead did not go to plan as the promising youngster only played ten Premiership matches across the second half of the 2015/16 campaign and the first half of the 2016/17 season combined for the Scottish giants.
He scored two goals and failed to provide an assist in those games and Rodgers, who had joined in the summer of 2016, decided to send him out on loan to Aberdeen.
How much was Ryan Christie worth in 2018?
Christie spent the next 18 months on loan with the Dons and Transfermarkt placed his market value at just €700k (£605k) by the end of his stay there in 2018.
The Scotland international did enjoy a strong spell with Aberdeen as he produced 15 goals and 18 assists in 57 matches across all competitions in his season-and-a-half.
His creativity was on full display during the 2017/18 campaign as the former Inverness star assisted 15 goals in 42 games, which included 11 assists in 31 Premiership outings – to go along with eight goals.
The attacking midfielder had proven himself to be a reliable attacking option in the top-flight of Scottish football but had yet to be provided with the opportunity to showcase his talent on a regular basis for Celtic.
This is where Rodgers hit the jackpot for the Bhoys as the ex-Liverpool boss decided to bring Christie into the first-team fold at Parkhead for the 2018/19 campaign.
How many goals did Christie score for Celtic?
The Scottish maestro ended up on 41 goals in 151 appearances for the Hoops in all competitions before his eventual exit from the club in 2021.
His real breakthrough and defining season with the Bhoys, however, was the 2018/19 campaign as Rodgers placed his trust in the talented youngster and afforded him the chance to make a name for himself at Paradise.
Christie produced 11 goals and nine assists in 38 matches throughout the year, which included nine goals and six assists in 23 Premiership clashes.
Only Scott Sinclair (11) and Odsonne Edouard (14) scored more league goals for Celtic that term, and they both played at least five more matches than the ex-Aberdeen loanee.
This shows that Rodgers' faith was rewarded as Christie became an integral cog in the team's attacking set-up with his ability to score and assist goals on a regular basis from an attacking midfield or wide position.
The Northern Irish boss did depart to join Leicester City towards the end of February during that season but his excellent work in unearthing the best of the Scotland international at Parkhead was then utilised by his successors over the subsequent years.
Christie racked up an outstanding 11 goals and 11 assists in 24 Premiership matches during the 2019/20 campaign, which shows that he almost averaged a direct goal contribution every game.
His terrific level of production, in terms of goals and assists, at the top end of the pitch made him a valuable asset for the club, off the pitch as well as on it.
How much was Christie worth at the time of his exit from Celtic?
The Hoops eventually decided to cash in on the talented playmaker in the summer of 2021 as English side Bournemouth swooped in to secure his services.
At the time of the move, Transfermarkt placed his market value at a whopping €7m (£6m) and this means that his valuation soared by a staggering 900% between the summers of 2018 and 2021.
Christie, who ex-Hoops forward Frank McAvennie once hailed as "wonderful", produced excellent performances for Celtic, as shown by his aforementioned statistics, and that caused his price to skyrocket as he played regular football for the Scottish giants.
Therefore, Rodgers hit the jackpot for the Hoops with his decision to bring the youngster into the first-team fold after his loan spell with Aberdeen, instead of going out into the market to sign an established first-team star from another club to come in and block Christie's progression.
The 28-year-old wizard, who has played 38 Premier League matches for the Cherries to date, is the perfect example of what good coaching and brave decision-making can lead to.
This is why Rodgers must keep a close eye on the academy set-up and any young talents who are currently out on loan away from Parkhead as the next Christie could be right around the corner.
Bringing through exciting prospects from the academy can save the club millions on new signings and, potentially, give the supporters another reason to back them if they are a local player who they can relate to and root for.
