Report: Celtic are interested in Dinamo Zagreb defender Amir Rrahmani

By Hamish Carton

June 10, 2019

Celtic look like continuing a Croatian trend with reports that they’re in for Dinamo Zagreb defender Amir Rrahmani. The Hoops are said to be interested in the Kosovan centre-back who plays for the former club of both Jozo Simunovic and Filip Benkovic.

Belgian outlet La Derniere Heure report that Rrahmani is attracting interest of Standard Liege, Celtic and Amiens. They say that the Dinamo Zagreb defender could be available for between €1.5 and 2 million this summer.

(Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images)

Who is he?

Rrahmani won two caps for Albania between 2014 and 2015 before switching allegiance to the newly formed FIFA member Kosovo. He has won 22 caps since 2014 and netted four goals.

His goalscoring record translates to his club side too. Rrahmani netted three goals in 15 league appearances for the Croatian champions, but it’s his work keeping the ball out that makes for the most impressive reading.

(JOHN THYS/AFP/Getty Images)

Dinamo won 13 of the 15 matches Rrahmani took part in and conceded just five goals. In total, he helped the Blues to 11 clean sheets as they breezed to the title by 25 points.

Rrahmani also captained his country in their most recent match – a 1-1 draw against Montenegro.

(Photo by MB Media/Getty Images)

Verdict

The defender clearly has something about him if he’s the captain of his country at the age of 25. He also comes from a club who have a decent track record of producing centre-halves. Jozo Simunovic has been a solid enough defender for Celtic while Filip Benkovic clearly possesses immense talent.

If Rrahmani is available for a fee of around £1.5million then there’s no reason for us not to take the gamble. He has experience of winning trophies and also played seven games in the Europa League last season. It seems like he ticks a lot of boxes.