Perhaps the stupidest transfer story of recent seasons is the one that surfaced today, about the young Scotland international Tommy Conway. It appeared in The Record, but where they got it from God alone knows. They said it’s an exclusive. If that’s to hide something that first appeared on Football Insider, I can understand them disguising it.
“Tommy Conway Celtic and (Ibrox) transfer battle is ON as both rivals plot £300k swoops under one condition” is the headline of this absolutely nonsensical piece of rubbish.
According to the writer, Scott Burns, both Glasgow clubs have decided to try and sign Conway. Are we doing it right now, when both sides need a striker? No, we’re going to wait until the next of next season before making our moves on a free … and as both clubs apparently are pursuing this quite ludicrous strategy it’s a “battle” between us.
Here’s the first question that comes to mind; if Celtic has decided that Conway is a goer, why don’t we just buy him right now? We’ve got the money. This is why the idea of a “transfer battle” between the two clubs is manifestly ridiculous.
If we decide to pursue the same player they do, if we think he’s next level and are willing to push out the boat, as long as that player isn’t a dyed in the wool Sevconian (and even if he is; that’s happened before after all) it will come down to money and we have more of it. This is Scott Brown writ large; that was the last time Celtic and a club from Ibrox did genuinely go head-to-head for the same player and as was all too predictable, we won.
Here’s the second question that comes to mind; how does Burns know this? I understand that it’s possible that both clubs like Conway, I also accept that there might be a leak from one of the clubs on this. But for both clubs to leak the same thing, at the same time, and to be following nearly identical paths to get the same player … that sounds genuinely fantastical and I would estimate the chances of that being real as virtually nil.
Third question, and this is the big one; isn’t this strategy … nuts? Haven’t Celtic, in any case, been here before? We were going to attempt this with John McGinn after Hibs refused to sell him. He didn’t want to wait. He signed for Villa. Having not learned from that we attempted the same strategy shortly thereafter with Alfie Doughty. He went to Luton rather than hang about waiting on a move to Celtic on a free when his contract ran down.
You’re asking a player to take a risk with his future, and for what? So that you can save a few quid on a transfer fee? What sort of message are you sending? It is arrogant and presumptive to expect any player to risk going into the last six months of his contract when anything could happen to him, just so we can save a few quid. It makes us look uncaring. It makes us look cheap.
And it presumes a lot about the player as well.
What if he has a great season and scores a hatful of goals? Is he supposed to ignore all the other interest, even if its from clubs in the English top flight?
What if the kid feels some residue of loyalty for his current club, and signs a new contract to make sure they get the best possible deal out of it? I know people hold some very cynical views about the game we all follow, but that’s not outside the realms of possibility, is it?
What if a proposal like this is put to him and he feels genuinely offended at being nickel and dimed like this, and wants a club where his value is recognised and who pursues him aggressively, right now? If I were the player, being approached by a rep from one of the Glasgow clubs I might feel that a proposal on these grounds was offensive and undervalued me.
We know this is the silly season, and the silly season tends to come with the silliest transfer stories. But I cannot see any way that there’s anything in this. This kid is 21, he’s doing well for himself right now and he looks like he has something … he’s also just been called up to the Scotland squad, and so he’s going to be playing in a major finals.
If he’s worth the punt then Celtic would take the punt. He ticks the boxes. He fits the profile, and unlike some clubs we do not have to short-change his current side by waiting until we can pay some sort of “cross border” cut-rate fee.
Almost all the stories during the transfer window are going to be speculative at best, but few of them are going to be truly terrible in the way that this one is.
This if true, is typically Celtic, I know he is a non executive director, but this has Lawell all over it, it is happening far to often now, the manager should insist on the players he wants.
These hacks have tae justify their jobs, so they’ll create all sorts of speculative pish. A lot more so in the close season. It’ll be a daily thing until the season starts.
As soon as I saw this story I knew you’d be all over it, James. It’s utter pish.
First qn I’d have is who the fek in Tommy Conway?
two way battle for every meaningless target they have or sign beating Celtic and a host of other English and Italian clubs for his signature, Jeez!! What have the Italians done to deserve this bad PR?
When the mighty the rangers pounce on a world class player good enough to play for REAL yet on a free transfer . LMFAO.
I fair miss the old David Murray jet stories to woo players or the Glib one jetting in to seal a deal. The media make their club a bigger embarrassment than they are.
Ask yourself this, since their inception 12 years ago, how many players have the rangers bought and then sold for profit. Handful at most.
Churned through hundreds of donkeys paying big money other clubs would not to eventually get moved out on free’s and nominal sums. Making out stores of Chinese, Saudi teams wanting their dross for jillions.
Roll on the new season.
If we wanted or want Tommy Conway then a deal would be had. This story, for me, is Sevco do want him but can’t afford a fee and have asked his agent if he’s willing to wait a season for it to happen. In order to make it look less like a biscuit tin move by them they’ve asked their friends in the media to say that Celtic are after the same deal and therefore stop “ra bears” knowing they are really really skint.
Correct my friend.