Dunajska Streda's pride at Celtic deal is a lovely touch

By David Walton

January 9, 2019

When it comes to friendly transfer agreements, Dunajska Streda must be near the top of the list.

Celtic signed Vakoun Issouf Bayo last night for figures close to £2million from the Slovakian side. Despite being second in their league and gunning for their first league title, the Slovaks were happy to do a deal.

Bayo will meet up with the squad for the first time in Dubai, as he looks to make his mark early on.

But one of the most striking aspects of the deal has been just how delighted Streda seem to get it over the line. Confirming the agreement on their official Twitter account, the Slovaks expressed their pride at the deal.

A massive first for Streda

You can understand why the Slovaks are so proud of the deal.

Bayo represents their first ever player to have been sold to a British club. That clearly means a lot to them, and their tribute video of him on their Twitter also heightens the importance of this deal to them.

The deal is the biggest fee Streda have received in their history. Therefore, this is groundbreaking for them in more than one aspect, and they’ll consider it a huge step forward.

Vakoun Issouf Bayo is making a huge step-up (Bertrand Langois/AFP/Getty Images)

They’ll now surely be keeping an eye on his progress in Scotland. How he performs is almost just as important for Streda as the deal itself, as this is going to be a deal that could be hugely influential to Slovak football. Should Bayo be a success, it would mark Slovakia as a market to return to in the future.

Timothy Weah and Odsonne Edouard are already at the club, so it’ll be tricky for Bayo to get into the side immediately. With a four-year contract sealed, however, there’s plenty of time for him to make an impact.

From Streda’s perspective, however, it’s a deal that could have a massive knock-on effect for themselves and Slovakian football as a whole.