Celtic and Lyanco link already over as defender makes Qatar switch

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Celtic won’t be signing Southampton defender Lyanco this summer after Qatari club Al Gharafa announced he has landed in Doha to sign for them.

The Stars League side confirmed the news on social media earlier this evening, quickly ending the prospect of the Brazilian arriving at the Scottish champions.

Lyanco only emerged as a potential transfer target this weekend, with reports indicating that Celtic were interested in a loan deal to provide cover for the injured Cameron Carter-Vickers, Maik Nawrocki and Stephen Welsh, all of whom are out for months.

The 26-year-old signed for Southampton from Torino in 2021 and although he has been utilised as a defensive option often it had become clear his time on the south coast was over.

Thankfully it was also stated in the initial report that he was just one of several options, so Celtic will hopefully be able to strike his name off the list and move on swiftly.

Celtic are still thought to be in the market for a new defender this week and a loan deal would appear to make the most sense given the situation.

Currently, Gustaf Lagerbielke and Liam Scales are Rodgers’ strongest defensive pairing and that’s far from ideal.

Lagerbielke may well come good but Scales has done little to show he can be a consistently impressive performer at Celtic and struggled to cope with St Johnstone at times on Saturday. The Bhoys need an upgrade.

All eyes will be on the rumour mill now as fans anxiously await updates on transfer movement. A central defender isn’t the only needed recruit and the pressure is on the club to deliver big in the final days of the window.

In other news, Daizen Maeda honestly concedes he’s suffering from an AngeBall hangover at Celtic.