Fikayo Tomori to Celtic certainly looks like a no-go now after his latest reported valuation was bulked up.
According to the Standard, Tomori’s value has rocketed since Frank Lampard became Chelsea manager. The Blues youngster will now apparently cost any suitors at least £20million. Chelsea apparently don’t want to sell him either.
Celtic were first linked with Tomori by the Daily Mirror back in May (19th May, page 66). There was always the chance that a loan move could’ve been possible for the centre-back, however.
But unfortunately, the Standard believes that Chelsea now want him tested at the top level. A loan to Derby has apparently been ruled out as Chelsea don’t want to see him at Championship level. Given the level of clubs Celtic face on a weekly basis in Scotland, we can probably rule out Chelsea considering us either.
Celtic could be terrific for Tomori’s mentality. We have the same demand of winning every week as Chelsea, if not greater. He would also be able to perform in one of the most pressurised environments in British football. But given how England generally view Scottish football, it doesn’t look likely.
Fikayo Tomori to Celtic has no legs to it anymore
Celtic never reportedly made an offer for the Chelsea centre-back. Therefore, you have to wonder whether we ever did truly want him. The Standard mentions that clubs interested include teams from the top flight in England, Germany, and Portugal respectively.
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Celtic weren’t given a mention, and that makes sense if you add up our lack of a genuine move for the Englishman. Tomori remains a highly-rated youngster, however, and it could be worthwhile for Celtic to chance it and make an offer.
Neil Lennon is in dire need of another centre-back this summer. A one-year loan deal for Tomori would fit the bill nicely, but we also couldn’t guarantee him first-team games every week. Tomori would have to work to get in ahead of Kristoffer Ajer or Christopher Jullien respectively. That’s another aspect that could put Chelsea off loaning to us.
The lack of genuine reports linking Celtic to Tomori these days, however, would suggest the ship has sailed anyway.
Our search for a centre-back goes on, with Lennon admitting in his press conference yesterday that he was “nowhere near” finished finalising his squad (Celtic TV).
But even if a move for Tomori would read well and look good on paper, his increased valuation combined with Chelsea’s requirements for a loan deal makes this extremely unlikely.