Colby Donovan
The full-back became one of the latest Academy graduates to make the step up to the first-team, making his senior debut for the club during the 2025/26 season.
Signing his first professional contract with the club in the summer of 2022, Donovan has risen through the ranks of the Academy.
Featuring for the club’s under-18s, Donovan soon made the step up to the B Team, becoming a regular for Stephen McManus’ side during the 2023/24 campaign.
Having nailed down a role in the B Team, the right-back caught the eye of Brendan Rodgers, and first joined up with the senior squad during pre-season in the United States in 2024.
After another positive season in his development with the young Hoops, which included regularly featuring in the UEFA Youth League campaign which seen the Celts reach the knockout stages, Donovan enjoyed another pre-season with the first-team squad.
It was during pre-season trips to Portugal, Ireland and Italy that he impressed once more, and even scored during the Celts’ 2-1 win over Cork City in the Cork Super Cup.
That soon led to a senior debut for the Hoops, coming off the bench to make his first appearance in a 3-0 win over Livingston.
The full-back continued to go from strength to strength, making his first start in a 2-1 win over Kilmarnock, before a few weeks later also making his first European start and impressing during a 1-1 draw against Crvena Zvezda.
