Celtic-linked Bobby Clark is reportedly to be sold at a cut price this summer.
The midfielder was brought to Red Bull Salzburg for £10 million two years ago, reuniting with Pep Lijnders, with whom he had worked at Liverpool.
Lijnders was sacked after just months in Austria, and Clark’s game time decreased, with the minutes he did get often being out of position. He was sent on loan to Championship side Derby County ahead of this season.
Out of the blue, reports last October claimed that Celtic had agreed a £6 million deal to sign Clark, but this turned out to be false. It now appears that he is available at a much lower price.
Do you expect Celtic to break their record transfer fee this summer? (£11m)
Bobby Clark: Salzburg planning to sell Celtic-linked midfielder
As reported by the Daily Record, Salzburg are expected to sell Clark for a reduced fee with a significant sell-on clause.
Stuttgart and Borussia Monchengladbach are interested, with other English clubs in the race.
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Clark was named Young Player of the Year by the Rams last week, as the club agonisingly missed out on a play-off place on the final day of the season.
He is the son of ex-Newcastle midfielder and Kilmarnock manager Lee Clark, playing in the academy at St James’ Park before being plucked by Liverpool.
As a teenager at Anfield, he was handed 14 senior appearances by Jurgen Klopp, scoring in a European win over Sparta Prague in 2024.
Speaking to TNT Sports after that game, Klopp said of Clark: “He played incredibly. It was his first goal but he won the ball back then and he was after another one.”
“The steps the boy made though, pfff [wow]!
“We’ve had such a difficult situation with all the injuries and then the boys stepped in and took their chances. So I’m very happy with that, they were exceptional again.”
Derby fans are keen for Clark to return to Pride Park in the summer, but they won’t be alone in pursuing him.
What state is Celtic’s midfield in? Who needs to stay and who needs to go?
Celtic being linked with players despite a permanent manager
Despite uncertainty over the permanent future of Martin O’Neill, Celtic have been credited with an interest in plenty of players.
Many of them, such as Elijah Just, Luke Graham and Marc Leonard, are right on their doorstep.
Others, such as Oskar Wojcik, Issa Doumbia and Filip Rozga, appear to have been scouted over a significant period of time.
A goalkeeper appears to be a priority, with Mat Ryan, Calum Ward and Nikolas Polster all reported targets.
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