Aiden McGeady names Celtic ‘long term prospect’ striker and why Kyogo sale makes sense

Add as preferred source on Google

Celtic must have been planning for the day Kyogo leaves Parkhead.

Rennes are closing in on Kyogo with the striker already in France having travelled from Glasgow to complete the switch this weekend.

Manager Jorge Sampaoli hoped to have the Japanese in before AS Monaco this weekend as he hinted the attacker might even feature if they can organise the details sharpish.

It all hinges on Jota’s Celtic return which has been delayed due to Storm Eowyn this week.

Brendan Rodgers seemingly won’t sign off on Kyogo’s move before he gets the Jota deal sewn up but the Hoops manager has always wanted a new striker and a wide player in the door this month.

• READ MORE: Celtic lodge seven-figure bid for Louie Barry as Aston Villa lay out striker’s transfer trajectory

Aiden McGeady says Adam Idah is Celtic’s long-term striker

The boss prefers having three attacking options within his squad and with Kyogo leaving it means another slot to fill.

Johnny Kenny has come back from his Shamrock Rovers loan and is one option while Daizen Maeda can also play up top.

But Aiden McGeady believes the fact that Celts spent big on Adam Idah signals their attention that the Irishman was always set to be the long-term striker at the club.

Earning £10million for Kyogo, McGeady says, fits the player trading model at the club and “makes sense”.

Although, speaking on the Warm Up, the former Celt believes the ideal time to sell their talisman was perhaps a year or two ago to maximise profit.

What McGeady says about Celtic landing £10m Kyogo fee

“He is (Celtic’s best striker) but bringing in Adam Idah for that amount of money means he is the long-term prospect,” McGeady eplained.

“Ultimately Celtic for the last 20 years have been a very well run organisation.

“Player trading model, Kyogo getting to that age is probably not the ideal time to sell him.

“Not saying he’s past his best, not saying that, but the ideal time to sell him might have been a year or two ago.

“The way Celtic look at things in my opinion is if you can get money for a player who is 30, not on the decline, but you don’t get two/three year contracts over the age of 30 anymore.

“If you can still get good money for one of your top players and bring success on the park, which Celtic have done for the last 15/20 years, it makes sense.”