Jens Berthel Askou says Motherwell will sell Celtic target Elijah Just when the timing is right.
Just is admired by Celtic, Rangers and likely many others, having dazzled in his debut season at Fir Park.
In an overachieving Well side under Askou, the New Zealand international has established himself as one of the leading contenders for the league’s Player of the Year award at the end of the season.
With the big boys circling, is the sale of the midfielder inevitable? That’s what his manager was asked.
Would Elijah Just be a good addition to the Celtic team?
Let us know in the comments.
Jens Berthel Askou on Celtic target Elijah Just
Responding to this question at his press conference, Askou said: “Well, that is a very good question, and something that, for obvious reasons, I cannot answer!
“But I do hope, and I’ve said many times, that our players do so well that they generate interest from bigger clubs, because that’s the ambition we have on their behalf when they come here…
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“That they get the opportunity to highlight and showcase [themselves], and lift the club, at the same time, up to the next level.
“And then, when the time is right, like it was with Lennon last summer, and like it wasn’t in the winter for a few of our players where there was possibilities if we had chased them…
“Then it will happen, and that’s what we want. Not all of them at the same time, but at a speed where the club is also sustainable.”
Asked if he thinks that the trend started by Lennon Miller of lucrative sales will continue, Askou said: “I hope that it will.
“I hope in general for Scottish football that we are able to lift our income, transfer revenue. Not just for the Old Firm, but also the teams below.
“Because it’s absolutely necessary, if we want to take the next step, that we generate more income from transfers.
“Now we are losing a team in Europe after next season, which will make the chances smaller for the generating income that way.
“So transfers are obviously a bigger part of generating income to reinvest in clubs and leagues of our size, and I really hope that it will raise the bar of what clubs can ask.”
Jens Berthel Askou to Celtic: do you see it happening?
Celtic’s interest in Elijah Just in others at Motherwell
The Hoops have been monitoring Just for a number of months, but he isn’t the only man at Fir Park being linked with a move to Glasgow.
Of course, Askou himself is a managerial candidate for Celtic, with suggestions this week that he would be “extremely keen” on the role.
He is among the bookmakers’ favourites for the permanent job, though recent reports say that Robbie Keane is the frontrunner.
‘Well forward Tawanda Maswanhise has also been linked with Celtic as he currently tops the Scottish Premiership scoring charts
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