Virals: State of play as 28-year-old could end up not leaving Celtic
It is time for another update on the state of play regarding 28-year-old Celtic striker Georgios Giakoumakis, and his future at the club.
It has long been rumoured that he is going to leave the Hoops in the January transfer window, but this might not be the case after all,
The Daily Record is reporting that Atlanta United want to sign the forward on loan with an option to buy, but the Hoops are in favour of a transfer without the loan option.
The report goes on to say that unless a bid is submitted that suits Celtic – be that from Atlanta United, Urawa Red Diamonds – who have bid £4m for the player, but he’d rather move to America – or another club – the Hoops are prepared to keep the striker at Celtic Park until the end of the season and will look at the situation again in the summer.
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After all the speculation about Giakoumakis’ future at Celtic, it would be a bit of a surprise if he stayed at the Hoops until the end of the season. But in a way that could be a good thing for the club, as it would give new striker Hyeongyu Oh more time to settle in at Celtic Park, and he wouldn’t have to be rushed into the squad straight away.
On the other hand, you don’t want to keep an unhappy player, which is what the Greek forward might well be if he doesn’t get his move to the United States. It will be interesting to see if Giakoumakis is involved in the Hoops squad for this weekend’s game against Dundee United, if he is is fit he could well be, but perhaps with all the speculation he won’t be in the best frame of mind to play for the Bhoys.
Ange Postecoglou’s viewpoint on the situation will be fascinating, as it looks like he is planning for life without Giakoumakis by signing the aforementioned Oh, so how he deals with possibly having three strikers in the squad for the rest of the season would be intriguing to say the least.
As the MLS transfer window closes later than the Scottish one, Giakoumakis could still leave the Hoops after the end of January, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if that was what happened. But the deal has to be right for the Hoops, and the club are doing the right thing in holding out for a straight transfer and not a loan with an option to buy if certain guarantees are met.
