Loaned out Celtic man is star of new club with multiple goals and assists in league and Europe

Celtic winger Luis Palma continued his fruitful start to the season out on loan with a starring performance in Europe on Thursday night.

While his parent club have been struggling in attack - Celtic’s 2-0 defeat to Braga in the Europa League meaning they have drawn a blank in five of their 12 matches so far this term - Palma has been racking up the goals and assists for Lech Poznan following his summer loan move to Poland.

The Honduras international was signed by Celtic on a five-year contract from Greek side Aris in the summer of 2023 and made a decent impression in his first season at Parkhead with 10 goals and 11 assists in 36 appearances - including strikes against Atletico Madrid and Feyenoord in the Champions League group stages.

Celtic's Luis Palma has enjoyed a successful start to his loan spell in Poland. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group) | SNS Group

However, his minutes dwindled under Brendan Rodgers last term, along with his output, and he spent the second half of the campaign on loan at Olympiacos where he managed just one goal and assist.

The 25-year-old has rediscovered his form at Lech Poznan, however, with seven goal involvements in 13 matches for his new club, who have a buy-out option included in his season-long loan deal from the Scottish champions.

Palma most recently bagged a goal and an assist in the 4-1 win over Rapid Vienna in his side's opening Conference League match on Thursday night having already contributed three goals and two assists in the first seven matches of the Ekstraklasa campaign to place him among the league's top forwards.

He was also involved in controversary when he was shown a straight red card - upgraded from a yellow following a VAR check - in a match against Rakow on September 24 following a challenge which fractured the leg of his opponent, resulting in a two-match ban.

Palma later took to Instagram to post an apology. He wrote: “A few hours have passed since the incident, and I would like, first of all, to offer my most sincere apologies to the coaching staff, my teammates and all the Lech fans for what happened yesterday, which left the team at a numerical disadvantage.

“Secondly, I want to publicly express my apologies and make it clear that there was never any bad intention on my part to hurt Zoran Arsenic.

“Unfortunately, I caused an injury that I never wanted to happen. I sincerely wish him a speedy and complete recovery, as well as strength for him, his family, and the whole team. LP77″