So today it is the turn of Jozo Simunovic to be linked with a move elsewhere; if you believe what you read in the MSM (I know, stop laughing) he has “agreed terms” with a French club although Celtic has not agreed to sell him to them.
The alleged fee of £4 million is an insult when you consider that he was one of the mainstays of the central defence last season and could well go on to be a key part of it in this campaign. Which means both clubs will be miles apart on their valuation if this story is even remotely true.
On top of everything else, we are still one central defender down and so selling him would make not one blind bit of sense even if the fee was a more appropriate one.
So what does that leave us with? It’s either the media writing drivel again just to get hits or its as clear an example of a club tapping a player as you’ll ever see.
And we recognise this because we have seen it before in this window, with Kieran Tierney over and over again.
This is one of three things;
Celtic’s players are being tapped, the media is doing the job of agents for them or the press is simply making this stuff up.
Our club should be screaming over this whatever the reason.
The outlets which are either stirring the soup or acting as conduits for other clubs, advertising how much our players could earn if they agitated for moves, ought to be taken to task for it, and if the clubs themselves are behind it then they should be reported for their conduct.
This stuff goes on too much.
In my personal view, the Simunovic story is the kind of disreputable nonsense that has the fans so cheesed off with the hacks.
Even if the player were unhappy behind the scenes – and there is no evidence to suggest any such thing – the reputed offer (which has not even been made yet … that’s what makes this story stink all the more) is a joke and Celtic would never even entertain it.
In fact, Lennon used pretty near those exact words.
“I’m a big Jozo fan. There’s been speculation about him but we are not entertaining any offers.” Which to me is all I need to hear to know what this story is made of.
This is lazy journalism of the absolute worst kind; either that or it’s the hacks causing us trouble again, which we know is their forte.
The French club in question is Lille, and that’s where the first clue is.
It comes in the same weekend that Leicester are linked with Ajer, another story dismissed by Neil as little more than a joke.
It’s like the media looks around for clubs which have come into big money and simply cuts and pastes their name into as many transfer stories involving us as they can; Lille of course have just sold Pepe to Arsenal, as Leicester sold Maguire to Manchester United.
The manager has spoken. The club is holding firm on Tierney and demanding £25 million up front before Arsenal can even talk to him. Do we sound like we’re about to let go one of our key centre backs for a paltry sum such as this, without any sign of having a replacement scouted, without any early prospect of bringing somebody in?
Ignore this one.
Trust in the manager and the club.
The media gets away with this when people repost their nonsense and react with emotion rather than reason.
This isn’t going to happen.