According to the Sun, Manchester United and Arsenal have been dealt a transfer blow after Celtic boss Neil Lennon confirmed the club are in talks over a new contract for star striker Odsonne Edouard.
The Sun claim that the 22-year-old has been linked with a £30m move to the Premier League, with Leicester also said to be eyeing a move for the ace.
Neil Lennon has now confirmed that the Hoops are in ‘ongoing discussions’ with the striker’s representatives over a new contract, adding that Celtic want to keep the ace for at least another season.
Here’s what Lennon had to say on the Frenchman’s future:
“Yes, there are ongoing discussions at the minute with his representatives.”
“Ultimately he’s a player we want around. He’s a fantastic player. He’s really blossomed over the last couple of seasons.”
“He had a magnificent season this year and we want to keep him. It’s as simple as that. We’re doing everything we can to keep him here for at least another season anyway.”
Lennon added that Edouard has grown into a ‘top-class’ striker since joining Celtic:
“I think he is happy here. He’s got a fantastic relationship with me and my backroom team and his team-mates.”
“You can see how much the supporters appreciate him as well. I think that’s reciprocated.”
“He’s grown into a top-class striker. Of course there is going to be speculation around a player of that quality.”
“But we’re comfortable at the minute with the position we’re in with him. He seems pretty happy and we’re looking forward to seeing him back at training.”
“We’d love to discuss things with him and a few other players about what our plans are going forwards.”
The striker has been prolific ever since he moved to Scotland on an initial loan deal, Celtic signed the ace permanently from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2018.
As per Transfermarkt, Edouard has contributed a staggering 91 goals (60 goals and 31 assists) in just 126 appearances across all competitions for the Scottish giants.
Whilst this will be presented as a transfer blow to top sides in the media, in actual fact this impacts Manchester United and Arsenal very little given their current squad statuses.
For example, the Red Devils would have been in more need of adding a striker this summer if Odion Ighalo’s loan wasn’t extended.
From an Arsenal perspective, the Gunners would only really need to add an attacker of Edouard’s calibre were they to lose Alexandre Lacazette or Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the summer – and there’s been no concrete suggestion as such recently.
Edouard should certainly seek a move in the near future in order to take his career to the next level, respectfully the Scottish Premiership is just not competitive enough for the talent.
A move to a top club would certainly bolster the centre-forward’s chances of making France’s senior squad in the coming years, having represented Les Bleus widely at youth level.