Celtic decided to bring Brendan Rodgers back to Parkhead for a second spell in the dugout last summer after the departure of Ange Postecoglou to Tottenham Hotspur.
The Northern Irish head coach has had a mixed season so far as the Hoops were knocked out of the League Cup in August and finished bottom of their Champions League, whilst they remain top of the Scottish Premiership table.
This suggests that it has been far from a perfect reunion, particularly after Postecoglou won the domestic treble last season, but there have been a number of positives as well.
Rodgers has, for example, played a blinder with central defender Liam Scales since his return to Glasgow as the central defender's value has skyrocketed this season.
Liam Scales' value last summer
The Republic of Ireland international spent the 2022/23 campaign on loan with Aberdeen in the Premiership and was valued at €600k (£513k) by Transfermarkt at the end of May 2023, which was also his value upon the Northern Irishman's appointment on June 19th.
Scales made 31 appearances in the Scottish top-flight for the Dons and completed 75% of his attempted passes, as he gained valuable minutes in the division.
The 25-year-old titan also made 2.9 tackles and interceptions per game and won 66% of his duels on the ground, which shows that he was able to dominate opposition attackers on the deck.
Ahead of that season, he had only made 13 competitive appearances for Celtic. This is why going out to play regular game time was crucial for his development, as his progression was hindered by his lack of minutes at Parkhead.
Liam Scales' current market value
At the time of writing (09/02/2024), Scales is valued at €2m (£1.7m) by Transfermarkt, which is a big increase of 233% from the €600k valuation at the start of the season.
Gustaf Lagerbielke, Maik Nawrocki, and Nat Phillips were all signed to compete in his position at centre-back last summer, which made the task of emerging as one of the first-choice options for Rodgers look like a challenging one for him.
However, the former Leicester City head coach has placed his faith in the former Aberdeen loanee and hit the jackpot with a string of impressive performances at the back.
Sofascore rating
7.58
3rd
Accurate passes per game
92.9
1st
Interceptions per game
1.0
4th
Clearances per game
3.9
1st
Tackles per game
1.7
7th
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, Scales ranks highly among his teammates in a number of metrics in the Premiership so far this season for Celtic.
The Irish colossus, who was hailed as "outstanding" by Chris Sutton earlier this season, has started 23 league matches for the Hoops and made 147 ball recoveries in those games.
His pass accuracy has jumped up from 75% last season to 88% this season, which suggests that the talented gem has composed himself on the ball to reduce his mistakes in possession.
The Celtic enforcer has also won 70% of his ground duels in the league this term, a 4% increase from last season, as he has consistently dominated players on the deck.
Overall, Rodgers has hit the jackpot by providing Scales with an opportunity to impress as the centre-back has emerged as a player on the pitch and his market value has soared.