Report: Celtic could be in line for a January windfall; Atletico want Dembele

By Euan Davidson

January 6, 2021

Former Celtic striker Moussa Dembélé hasn’t played for the club since 2018.

Yet, he’s still important in our future transfer plans. Any move for the lanky French hitman could net Celtic a significant windfall, due to sell-on clause agreed with Lyon.

For the Hoops, that became relevant again today, with news that Atletico Madrid are considering a massive bid for the goal-getter (Foot Mercato).

FootMercato are reporting that Lyon are considering selling last season’s top scorer, who has looked out of sorts in 20-21. In 16 Ligue 1 games, he’s only netted once (Transfermarkt).

That’s a significant drop-off, considering his tallies of 16 and 15 in prior seasons. However, Rudi Garcia’s tactics suit a different kind of striker, with former winger Memphis Depay often preferred in the middle.

Still, he’s had an excellent spell in his native land, even knocking Manchester City out of the Champions League.

Diego Simeone is said to be a huge fan of Dembélé, and is in the market for a striker after the departure of Diego Costa.

Dembele was huge for Celtic / (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

Europe’s elite come calling for former Celtic man Moussa Dembélé

Celtic fans, of course, know all about the qualities of Moussa Dembélé. He scored 51 goals and set up 18 in 94 appearances for the Bhoys.

Signed by Brendan Rodgers from Fulham for just £500,000 (Daily Record), it’s fair to say that we got more than our money’s worth. The French striker is likely to garner Celtic a considerable sell-on fee as part of any prospective transfer deal.

Valued at £36m by Transfermarkt, it’s likely that Lyon won’t sell for at least that evaluation. They’ll want to make a significant profit on the £19.7m they paid for him in 2018 (BBC).

Whether the ex-Celt actually wants a move is subject to speculation. Before his dramatic exit from Celtic Park, he tweeted anti-Brendan Rodgers rhetoric.

“A man, without his word, is nothing. A real man keeps his word”, Dembélé tweeted. Then, “A lie has many variations, the truth has none”.

Whether this scenario has the striker searching Wisdom Quotes or not is yet to become clear.