A Celtic pursuit of Wolves attacker Daniel Podence looks viable despite the English Premier League side putting a high valuation on any transfer move away from the club this summer.
Multiple outlets have reported that Celtic are admirers of the Portuguese winger, with Wolves said to be looking for as much as £12m for him. [Anthony Joseph]
However, it’s also noted that Celtic believe there is room to bring down that high fee, which would smash the Bhoys transfer record for an incoming signing.
But what is the reason behind that? A report from The Athletic this week sheds light, in which it is made clear that Wolves are in a pretty desperate position when it comes to their transfer dealings this summer, despite the money they receive every year for TV rights and sponsorship.
The report states that Wolves don’t even have the cash available to make moves for players valued under £10m and that they desperately need to ship out talents before they can bring in targets that fit into Gary O’Neil’s plans.
Suddenly, a cut-price deal with Celtic for Podence isn’t looking too shabby, in that context. Especially when you consider that the winger has less than a year left on his contract.
It would still be quite a coup for the Bhoys to land Podence, a player in his prime at 27 who initially moved to Wolves for a £16.6m fee back in 2020. [BBC]
This isn’t the kind of market that Celtic have been able to shop in over the last few years and his arrival would signal the booming spending power of the Bhoys thanks to successive Champions League qualifications, a huge fanbase that consistently puts money into the club and an increasingly strong player trading model.
Podence is a player with strong Premier League and Champions League experience, as well as pedigree in other leagues around Europe. He’s a viable candidate to fill the void left by Jota’s exit to Saudi Arabia. It’s exactly the kind of deal that Celtic fans have been craving this summer.
It seems that Celtic are in a strong negotiating position to follow through on that interest and it means we could be set for a very exciting end to the summer transfer window.
In other news, Celtic take pleasing strong stance after yet more nonsense from Rangers.
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