Report: Celtic hopes of new Ryan Christie contract dwindle

By John McGinley

August 30, 2021

Celtic hopes of tying Ryan Christie down to a new contract have dwindled in recent days, The Scotsman reports.

As we discussed last night, manager Ange Postecoglou confirmed there was still a dialogue open between the club and his representatives.

However, it seems that these talks have again stalled. The Scotsman say that English Championship side Bournemouth now feel they are front-runners for his signature. Burnley are also said to be keen.

That’s where journalist Alan Nixon comes in.

He reports “late drama” tonight in that a deal had actually been agreed with Burnley for Christie to go to Turf Moor, only for Bournemouth to make a late play.

Nixon believes that more money is on offer from Burnley but that Christie’s playing chances are better on the south coast.

Where all this leaves Celtic is that two major exits could happen before tomorrow’s deadline – Christie and Odsonne Edouard, as we discussed earlier.

That puts the Bhoys behind the eight ball a bit. The two most spoken about arrivals – Georgios Giakoumakis and Jota – appear to be direct replacements.

But will Celtic fans accept a two in, two out transfer deadline day when we have urgent need in other positions across the pitch? I’m not so sure.

What I do know is that tomorrow could well be one of the more interesting days of the season, both in terms of drama and ramifications for our ambitions.

Celtic have a lot of work ahead.

In other news, Bizarre Celtic kick-off time against Ferencvaros announced; UEFA dictated.