Charlton Athletic fans were over the moon with the performance of Celtic target Alfie Doughty yesterday, after he bagged an opening-day goal vs Crewe Alexandra in League One.
Athletic boss Lee Bowyer claimed last week that the club had rejected an offer from Celtic for the winger, who can play on either flank (London News Online). Bowyer said: “We did turn down an offer from Celtic, and they were at the game at the weekend from what I understand. But we’ve not heard anything since.”
And Doughty, who played on the right for Charlton yesterday, showed his qualities once again as he gave his side the lead. Darting onto a fine through ball, he ran in behind the Crewe defence before slotting home expertly with his left foot. You can view the goal below:
It was a fine finish from the Celtic-linked youngster, who done his reputation no harm with another impressive display.
Charlton would go on to win the match 2-0, and their supporters were left in no doubt as to who the difference-maker was. Here’s a look at some of their reaction to Doughty’s display:
https://twitter.com/jackksaless/status/1304812900914167808
https://twitter.com/lshulvsIV/status/1304812525020643329
https://twitter.com/PaulStDavis/status/1304808243403919363
Ball in Celtic’s court
With Bowyer not exactly ruling out any future offer from Parkhead, you imagine this is a deal Celtic could get done whenever they decide to seriously press ahead.
The winger is into the final year of his contract (Transfermarkt), meaning the Hoops could snap him up for nothing in January on a pre-contract. Charlton will surely look to avoid that as much as possible.
It’s also interesting to see that Doughty played on the right yesterday when he so often features down the left. That he adapted so well to the task at hand is another feather in his cap, and will surely have impressed Celtic once again.
Stat-tracking website WhoScored rated him as the highest-ranked performer on the pitch yesterday, giving Doughty an impressive score of 8.4.
The Daily Record reported last week that Celtic will return with an improved £400k offer for the winger. Therefore, looking at the sums involved even at this early stage, it doesn’t come across as a deal that would ultimately cost the Hoops a vast sum.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that Doughty would just come to Celtic Park and immediately be thrust into first-team matchday squads. It could be the case that Celtic view the youngster as a long-term option, especially considering he’s naturally a left-winger when our priority should be a player down the other side.
But for now we just have to wait and see whether Celtic come in with that improved offer, and whether Charlton deem it acceptable. Performances like yesterday certainly won’t lessen his value.
In other news, Shane Duffy has disclosed a message sent to him by former Celtic coach Damien Duff.
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