Bazoumana Toure, the subject of ‘serious interest’ from Celtic two years ago, has agreed a €50 million move to Newcastle.
Celtic scouts were early to Toure, watching him in action for Swedish side Hammarby as an 18-year-old just months after his initial move to Europe from Ivory Coast.
That summer, he was given a €10 million price tag by his club amid widespread interest. Despite the admiration of then-Celtic scouting chief Jay Lefevre, no offer was forthcoming and he stayed put.
Six months later, at the end of the Swedish season, Hoffenheim met the asking price and won the race. They are now about to seriously reap the rewards.
🤦♂️ Still no sign of an agreement for either of these two Celtic favourites to stay…
The season ended on May 23rd 🗓️
Hammarby sporting director was ‘excited’ by Celtic interest in Bazoumana Toure
Hammarby sporting director Mikael Hjelmberg said on the month of his exit: “There is nothing there.
“I read today that Celtic were going to make a bid… it sounded exciting. But nothing has reached me.”
READ MORE: Bursaspor ‘hoping for agreement’ with Kelechi Iheanacho amid Celtic doubt
Ironically, upon his exit from the Stockholm club, they replaced him with none other than Sebastian Tounekti.
Just six months later, Celtic signed Tounekti for £5.2 million, learning from the mistakes of 12 months earlier.
Toure was mainly used as a right-winger in his first six months in Germany, struggling to make an impact.
However, in his first full season under new boss Christian Ilzer, he was moved back to the left and racked up 14 goal contributions as they missed out on Champions League football by just a point.
Eddie Howe’s side have now identified him as their replacement for Anthony Gordon, who has completed a £69 million move to Barcelona.
Unusually in the modern game, Toure is a left-footer who specialises on the left. Blessed with blistering pace and footwork, he has been featuring at the World Cup with Cote d’Ivoire.
Who is that one player Celtic never signed that they should have gone all out for?
Celtic have missed out on some good ones in the transfer market
Celtic’s recruitment rightly comes in for some criticism, but Toure is an example of a player who the club could’ve acted more quickly on after positive scouting reports.
Celtic were strongly linked with Flavio Nazinho last year; the left-back has now completed a move to Monaco.
The club had scouted both Silas Andersen and Issa Doumbia in recent months, but the pair are now on the verge of joining Sporting in Portugal.
Veljko Milosavljevic, intensely scouted as a centre-back target, has grown immensely in value since his move to Bournemouth.
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