Sources: Celtic’s attempt to sign Wilfried Nancy favourite hit by stumbling block
Celtic may struggle to sign Wessam Abou Ali in January due to Columbus Crew’s reluctance to part with the striker.
Celtic’s favourite managerial target Wilfried Nancy is nearing an official appointment in Glasgow.
Sources told Football Insider that Martin O’Neill is preparing to step aside for Nancy despite a relatively successful interim period as the Hoops’ boss.
Work permit issues had slowed down Nancy’s arrival at Celtic, but with that nearly sorted out, the expected new manager can focus on working with his current squad and eyeing up January signings.
Celtic could cool off pursuit of Wessam Abou Ali due to price tag
As I revealed on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the Frenchman’s arrival could see Celtic raid the MLS for talent, due to his extensive knowledge of the league.
One of the players Celtic are lining up is Abou Ali, given his experience working under Nancy at Columbus Crew.
Yet, whilst the Palestinian may be intrigued by the prospect of working with his former manager, the fee attached to the transfer could lower the chances of a switch to from the USA to Scotland.
Speaking on the Inside Track podcast, I explained: “Trying to sign Abou Ali I think will be a difficult deal to do in January just due to the fact of the cost.
“I think Columbus Crew signed him for around £5.7million last summer so they’ll be looking to recoup most of that money if they were to sell him and I don’t think Columbus Crew are that keen on losing the player as well.
“[There are] obvious links of Wilfred Nancy being linked with players that he’s worked with before, but it looks like a really difficult deal to pull off in January for Celtic.”
Brendan Rodgers preparing for life without Celtic as new managerial challenges await
As a new era dawns upon Celtic Park, fans will likely be interested by where their previous manager will be heading after he resigned from the club at the end of October.
Sources told Football Insider that Premier League and European clubs are monitoring Brendan Rodgers’ situation after he left the Hoops.
The Northern Irishman is almost certainly in no rush to return to management as he weighs up his next job.
Leeds are one of the clubs interested in Rodgers and they definitely won’t be the last side to enquire about his services.