Riseth on Ajer: “I think he will stay at Celtic for now.”

Former Celtic centre-back Vidar Riseth is a close friend of current Hoops defender Kristoffer Ajer and in an interview with the Daily Record, he gave a major hint that his pal will stay at Parkhead next season.

Whilst Riseth acknowledged that the interest from AC Milan is to be real, the former Hoops star also revealed that Ajer was in no rush to leave Celtic:

There are so many rumours around Kris but he is used to it.I’ve said right from the start that Kris would prove to be a great signing for Celtic and I have no doubt he’ll go on to big things. There is talk of AC Milan and I know they are really interested. They’ve watched him many times and he is the type of player they want. I think he will stay at Celtic for now.

When asked about the type of prices that Celtic could demand if they chose to sell the 22-year-old, Riseth said that the Norwegian international is worth somewhere in the £20m- £30m range.

When the time comes for Kris to go, I think Celtic will be able to demand £20m – maybe even £30m. That’s the level we are talking about now. Kris is still only 22 and already has a lot of experience. He has played in Europe and he has been captain of Norway. That kind of quality comes at a cost. We will see but I believe he will stay at Celtic.

Read Celtic Verdict

In truth, if AC Milan came in with a bid of around £30m, we wouldn’t be surprised if Celtic accepted it, given the impact that the global health crisis will have had on their finances.

However, there were reports emerging a few weeks ago claiming that Ajer was keen to make a move, which can often drive an asking price down.

However, if the player is happy to stay as Riseth says, then Celtic hold all the cards as they’ll either get to keep an important player or receive a big fee for him.