Celtic player who Martin O'Neill wants out refuses transfer
Reo Hatate may refuse to leave Celtic in this window even though Martin O'Neill wants him to depart, sources have told Football Insider.
Celtic are looking to wrap up their summer business with a busy end to the window before next Thursday's deadline.
Hatate's future has been up in the air since the end of last season, when he fell out of favour under O'Neill.
His permanent appointment as Hoops boss has made an exit look likely for the Japanese international, yet he remains at Parkhead as it stands.
As I revealed on the latest edition of Football Insider's Transfer Insider podcast, Hatate will not leave Celtic unless he receives an offer he feels is worth pursuing in the next 10 days.
He rejected the chance to join Greek side Panathinaikos last week, and is also uninterested in moving to the Austrian Bundesliga or the MLS.
Reo Hatate could stay at Celtic despite widespread exit rumours
Sources have revealed to Football Insider that Celtic chiefs want Hatate to leave quickly to free up funds for potential new arrivals.
The 28-year-old has only featured in one of their four competitive games so far this season, and his current contract is set to expire in 2028.
Speaking on the Transfer Insider podcast, I explained: "Celtic are obviously open to offers for Hatate, having made him available, but then the player has turned down a move, so I think he’s just seeing what other options are out there for him.
"But again, if nothing suits Hatate, he's well within his rights to stay and fight for his place at Celtic, even though Celtic are more than willing to open the door for him to leave."
What has O'Neill said about Hatate's Celtic future?
Celtic are lining up a new midfield signing that would push Hatate even further down O'Neill's pecking order for the season ahead.
While he is in no rush to make a move, even with less game time on the horizon, O'Neill has urged Hatate to rediscover his old form while failing to rule out whether he will leave in this window.
Speaking to reporters after he played against LASK last week, O'Neill said: "I don’t know (if he will leave), and there are a lot of things that can happen between now and the third of September. There’s usually maybe something that might just happen at the time, so I don’t want to be saying something to you.
"If he’s still here at the football club, come on, just get going, get going, be the player that you were a couple of years ago. He's been a regular member of the side for a couple of years, but hasn't been so regular recently. It’s up to him to fight through."