By Alan Hutton

25th May, 2023 | 9:39am

Celtic told to spend 'hundreds of millions' this summer after confirmed news - pundit

Alan Hutton has claimed Celtic will need to spend “hundreds of millions” to truly compete in the Champions League next season.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the former Rangers defender urged fans to trust the recruitment process which has proven successful so far.

The Hoops secured their place in the Champions League group stages for the 2023-24 season by winning the Scottish Premiership title for the second year in a row.

This season’s European campaign did not go as planned for the Scottish Champions who were eliminated from the competition before Christmas after finishing bottom of their group.

As quoted by the Sun (18 May), Celtic legend Stiliyan Petrov, who played in the agonising Uefa Cup final defeat in 2003, said Ange Postecoglou will know that his current squad is not strong enough to compete at the top level in Europe.

Petrov said he expects the Hoops to have a busy summer as a result.

When asked what the Hoops need to do in this summer’s transfer window to prepare for the Champions League, Hutton told Football Insider: “If we are talking about actually competing in the Champions League and getting far, we are talking hundreds of millions to get deep into it.

“Celtic have shown in the past that they can compete with the top teams, Rangers can at times as well.

“I think you have to trust the recruitment that has been done, it has been excellent so far.

“If you really want to go deep into European competitions I think you need real strength and depth so that is what Ange will be looking at.“

In other news, Celtic fear Wolves will move for manager after new twist.