Sky Sports journalist Anthony Joseph has tweeted that Lyon and Porto are “monitoring” events regarding Celtic midfielder Olivier Ntcham.
Ntcham has been a regular in Neil Lennon’s starting XI in recent matches, but the Glasgow Times reported last week that the Frenchman’s agent had asked Celtic to provide a valuation for his departure.
This then led to Premier League interest being reported in the midfielder’s services, with West Ham, Everton, and Southampton listed as interested parties. (90Min).
However, Sky Sports man Joseph believes that there is now European interest in Ntcham as Southampton look set to drop out of the race:
French interest provides unwanted flashbacks
The last thing Celtic need is a situation similar to that of last summer when the likes of Marseille were interested in the Frenchman.
Ntcham told French media that he would “thrive” in his homeland and that he was too good for Scottish football (L’Equipe). It led to an unnecessary side-show in which the manager needed to have words with the player as speculation cooled.
However, if sides such as Lyon and Porto are interested in coming in for Ntcham, it gives Celtic a big decision to make. Especially considering the player himself will likely fancy it if his previous comments are anything to go by.
The midfielder was actually linked with a move to Porto last summer in a potential £14m move (Scottish Sun). But a deal failed to go ahead as Neil Lennon looked to utilise Ntcham for our nine-in-a-row push.
It looks like we may very well be involved in another summer saga involving the player if the last week is anything to go by. For now, however, there are no offers reportedly on the table which means nothing for Celtic to look at as things stand.
Ntcham has made 129 appearances for Celtic, scoring 23 goals and bagging 12 assists in all competitions (Transfermarkt).
In other news, Celtic fans have been looking back on a glorious day at Ibrox last season.
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