I love big John Hartson. I think he’s a cut above a lot of the pundits when it comes to talking about Celtic. He cares about our club more than he does making a splash or a big name for himself.
I like that about him. He’s measured and calm and talks sense.
I disagree with him today on Odsonne Edouard.
I don’t think Celtic is getting screwed over or that we’re making a mistake. £18 million is a decent sum for him, we’ll get back over £12 million of it for the next manager and we can start looking for his replacement now.
I would have said a month ago that it was worth trying to spark an auction. We’re a month on.
Things are pressing on us from all sides and we really need to get moving.
The longer Edouard hangs around the more his value falls and the lower the fee we can command. He can’t be allowed to lead the line in the European ties either. This is the moment.
Edouard gave us a couple of good years. That’s apparently enough for a footballer to decide it’s time to move on now.
He would have left last year, and he should have when you consider that he went through the motions most weeks instead of giving us his all. It was shocking to see his complete lack of application in certain games.
I will not miss him, not based on what we saw in his last 12 months.
Even without a manager in the building yet, I am glad that we’re not wasting further time on this deal. Get it done, Celtic, get him out the door and let’s bring in some money for the next guy.
Hartson wants what’s best for Celtic and I know it genuinely pains him to see a top talent going out the door, but this one is necessary and we’re doing it right.
The days when we were going to get £30 million plus for this total non-trier have been over for a while. We’re getting good fee for him here, and every penny now has to go back into the team.