Kris Ajer to Newcastle United isn’t the most ridiculous move in the world, but Celtic fans have laughed off the Magpies’ reported valuation of him.
Indeed, the Daily Mail has reported that the Premier League club are looking to offer a paltry £8m for the Norwegian’s services.
Ajer is into the final year of his contract this summer. Therefore, summer interest is bound to be there. In addition to that, his valuation looks set to plummet given the fact he can be snapped up for nothing in January.
The Mail believes that Celtic want as much as £35m for him. However, it’s clear a fee in the region of £15m-£20m, given his current situation, reflects his current valuation more appropriately.
It’s difficult to know why English clubs still think Celtic would operate at such a low financial level. Especially considering some of the deals we’ve done in the past. The likes of Kieran Tierney and Moussa Dembele have gone for big money in the past.
Kris Ajer will likely leave Celtic, but it won’t be for anything like £8m
If Ajer decided to stay, he would likely be Celtic’s next vice-captain. Or, if a new manager preferred him to Callum McGregor, perhaps even the new on-field leader after Scott Brown’s departure.
Ajer has title-winning experience, quadruple-treble winning experience, European experience, and regular international exposure. It’s so easy to forget that he’s only 22. He has plenty of room for development yet.
Celtic are also going to need plenty of money in the bank for the new manager’s rebuild. Selling our top stars for money like that wouldn’t be the best way to go about our business.
The Hoops of course do indeed look likely to sell the Norwegian. It wouldn’t fall in line with the club’s transfer policy to simply allow his deal to expire. But it’s difficult to take any club seriously if these are the kinds of valuations floating about.
And the fans have let their voices be heard on it as well. Reacting to the report on Ajer, the idea of £8m was quite rightly laughed out the door. Here’s a look at what supporters are saying:
https://twitter.com/Paddy7_/status/1375588656258318338
https://twitter.com/TheCelticEndPod/status/1375601208812040198
https://twitter.com/Firaldo87poker/status/1375608085906083841
In other news, Ryan Christie has explained why he didn’t protest the stonewall penalty he should’ve had for Scotland.
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