da lvbet： The sale of Odsonne Edouard to Crystal Palace has been hailed as ‘brilliant business’ for Celtic’.
da fazobetai： Those are the words of former Sunderland hitman Kevin Phillips, speaking to Football Insider.
The lowdown
A Celtic source has told the publication that add-ons could take the fee, initially £15million, as high as £20million.
That would make the sale of Edouard, who netted 86 goals in 179 appearances for the Hoops, the second most lucrative in Celtic’s history behind Kieran Tierney (£24.3million).
Celtic were in an ostensibly weak negotiating position because the Frenchman was into the final 12 months of his contract. He would have been entitled to strike a pre-contract agreement come January and leave on a free transfer.
The latest
Phillips was full of praise for Celtic, who banked a total of £34.2million from the sales of Edouard, Kristoffer Ajer, Ryan Christie and Jack Hendry.
“Brilliant business,” he said. “From the Celtic point of view, it’s given them the licence to spend a bit more when bringing those other players into the club.
“It’s a good deal all round.”
The verdict
What’s potentially most impressive most of all is the fact Celtic have signed an exciting replacement for a fraction of the fee.
Giorgos Giakoumakis won the golden boot for a relegated side in the Netherlands last season, which is a pretty mighty feat, and they were able to pick him up for a mere £2.25million.
Of course, Celtic don’t want to be a club who celebrate the sales of their best players, but it’s hard to see the cycle being broken with the money on offer south of the border.
In other news, a sell-on clause has emerged after a deadline day move.