Celtic chairman Peter Lawwell has insisted that the Parkhead side are always looking to invest in the squad – and will look to come out of the January transfer window stronger than how they go in.

There was criticism directed towards the Celtic board for a perceived failure to spend in the summer transfer window but Lawwell has maintained that the board are always looking to enhance the playing staff at the club.

“We don’t sit every month when the bank statement comes in and say ‘how good are we, we’ve got X in the bank?” he said. “We’re a football club. The purpose of having the money in the bank is to reinvest it back into the club and we’ll do that for the right players.

“We did bring in players. Every time we go into the window we want to try and strengthen.

“In the summer it was frustrating. We wanted to do more and make the squad stronger.

“The point I’m trying to make is that it’s not a lack of a will to invest in the squad.

“It’s not a case of get the chequebook out. The cheque book is out. But these things happen. We’re not the only club. It happens at most clubs where there are circumstances and times when you don’t get what you want.”

Celtic publicly lost out on John McGinn but Lawwell believes that the Parkhead side did everything possible to entice the player to the club.

“At the end of the day, John McGinn decided to go to Aston Villa rather than Celtic. That was his career choice,” he said. “We try and do our business professionally, privately and in confidence.

“What we won’t do is get dragged into responding to media or social media speculation or giving a blow by blow account of what’s happened.

“I’m satisfied that we did all we could in order to bring John McGinn to Celtic. But he made a career decision to join Aston Villa. Just as Odsonne Edouard made a career decision to join Celtic rather than the other clubs who were after him. It happens.

“Our job now going forward is to support Brendan [Rodgers]. There was no lack of support for Brendan.

“He does an outstanding job so why would we not support Brendan Rodgers? Of course we will.

“That’s our job going forward – to do all we can in the transfer market and developing our own players to make sure Celtic is as good a team as it possibly can be.” And Brendan Rodgers is looking to maintain the Scottish spine of the current Celtic side.

“We want good players but I always think it is important if you are a Scottish club you have a core who understand the history and culture of Celtic," he said.

“It is an important part of the DNA of the club going back to the ’67 team right through to this day.

“You need to have that core of Scottish players and other international players around that. “