The fee Celtic will get for Giorgos Giakoumakis; Bhoys reportedly accept new bid

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The transfer saga surrounding Giorgos Giakoumakis took a new twist this weekend after it was reported by Fabrizio Romano that Celtic accepted a new bid from Atlanta United for the striker, even after he had completed a medical for another club.

It has been widely reported that Giakoumakis travelled to the Netherlands this weekend to go through pre-transfer tests with the Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds.

However, things only progressed on that front because they offered a permanent transfer fee, as opposed to Atlanta’s initial loan-to-buy offer – which was rejected by Celtic.

Now, Romano reports that the Bhoys have accepted a $4.7m offer for the Greek striker, which is £3.8m at today’s exchange rate. The Japanese side are said to have offered a similar amount. [Scottish Sun]

Greek outlet SDNA previously reported that Giakoumakis’ preferred move was to Major League Soccer instead of the J-League, putting Atlanta in pole position to finalise his signature.

It’s unclear whether or not there will be any add-ons in the transfer that could push up the value of the deal for Celtic. As it stands, it looks like an initial fee of around £4m will be on its way to the Bhoys regardless of Giakoumakis’ final destination.

That will seem low to many Celtic fans who have grown to enjoy the striker’s physical style and goalscoring over the last 18 months.

However, the market for a player is dictated by how much teams are willing to pay, not the opinion of supporters. It seems this is the going rate.

Yesterday, Ange Postecoglou provided a bit more context surrounding the potential move, suggesting the player was happy to explore his options. A lack of playing time and the terms of his initial contract have been reported in the past as potential reasons for that.

Giakoumakis was a quality performer for the Bhoys and a crucial cog in last season’s title win. He’ll be fondly remembered if, as looks likely, his transfer is completed before the deadline.

In other news, Hyeongyu Oh set for quickfire Celtic debut.