Ex Celtic recruitment chief Nicky Hammond lands new role in Israel
Former Celtic head of football operations Nicky Hammond has landed a new role in Israel after being appointed Senior Football Advisor for Hapoel Tel Aviv.
The 55-year-old had an underwhelming 17-month spell at Parkhead when he was initially brought in on an interim basis as a replacement for Lee Congerton who followed Brendan Rodgers to Leicester City. During his first summer the Hoops signed Christopher Jullien and Mohamed Elyanousi, the latter on loan from Southampton.
But Hammond came in for heavy criticism with his tenure coinciding with the catastrophic failed 10-in-a-row bid. Many supporters pinned the blame on Hammond for disastrous signings such as Albian Ajeti, Vasilis Barkas and the big name loan signing of Shane Duffy.
Hammond previously had spells at West Brom and Reading before moving north of the border to join the Scottish Premiership champions. And in December 2021, after leaving Celtic, he was appointed as an interim transfer consultant by Newcastle United.
Now he’s heading to the Middle East to work with the 13-time Israeli title winners Hapoel Tel Aviv who are without a title win in a decade and finished fifth out of 14 in the top flight last season.
