Celtic manager Neil Lennon has claimed that the Hoops fought off interest from the English Premier League and abroad to secure the signing of Moritz Bauer, The Scottish Sun report.
Bauer was announced as the Hoops’ latest summer signing on Wednesday. It was a transfer that came as something as a surprise, with media outlets in Scotland and England not really getting a sniff of the news prior to Celtic’s statement.
It seems though that recruitment staff have been working on the deal for quite some time.
Lennon reckons he’s been on the club’s radar for the last 18 months and that they’ve fought off substantial interest from other clubs to land him.
As quoted by The Scottish Sun, he said: “We feel he will add to the squad and it’s a position we wanted to strengthen. I think we have done that.
“He has been on the radar for 18 months or so. There was other interest in him from Premier League clubs and abroad so we are delighted to get him in.”
Trial by fire
Lennon appears to be confident of Bauer’s ability and after Thursday night’s injury to Kristoffer Ajer, the manager has a massive call to make about his potential debut.
Ajer limped out of the impressive win over AIK.
Lennon later confirmed he is now a major doubt for the upcoming trip to Rangers, suffering from a groin strain (The Daily Record).
With no other right-back option available apart from Anthony Ralston, Bauer is likely to have the chance to show what he can do in one of our biggest games of the season.
The first derby in the Scottish Premiership can set the tone for the rest of the season and we must at least perform well.
Will Bauer be trusted to get the job done?
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
