Celtic in £7.3M Cash-Back Treble on Flawed Project Signing Policy

Tunisian champions Esperance have made an approach to Celtic about Vakoun Bayo according to a report in Scottish Sun today. The £2m Peter Lawwell Project signing is currently out on a season long loan with French second division side Toulouse who have an option to buy agreement in place with the fallen Scottish Champions. However Toulouse have yet to decide if they wish to pay the £2m transfer fee to sign the Ivory Coast international striker on a permanent deal this summer.

Bayo in action forToulouse vs Chateauroux – Ligue 2

Celtic signed Bayo from the Slovakian side Dunajska Streda in the 2019 January transfer window but he failed to establish himself as a regular starter, and was also hampered by various injuries in his first season at the club. Now though, just like Patryk Klimala earlier this week, Celtic look set to offload a project signing and recoup the transfer fee paid.

The Polish striker this week signed for MSL side New York Red Bulls for a £3.5m fee and with various add-ons that could rise to as much as £5m for Celtic.

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Alessio Romagnoli of AC Milan exchanges jerseys with Patryk Klimala of Celtic. Photo Jonathan Moscrop/Sportimage

Bayo knows all about football in Tunisia having played for Etoile du Sahel before getting his move to Europe, joining Slovakian side Dunajska Streda who later cashed in on the player netting £2m from the de facto Director of Football’s Project Fund.

Esperance have a healthy nine point lead at the top of the Tunisian League as they target another African Champions League success , having previously won it on four occasions, most recently two seasons ago. And they clearly believe that Vakoun Bayo is the man to lead their line for that campaign.

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Jack Hendry defender of KV Oostende pictured during the Jupiler Pro League match between KV Oostende and Sporting Charleroi on January 9, PhotoNews/Panoramic

Celtic are also set to get a cash-back deal on Jack Hendry, who last week was voted as the Best Player in the Belgium league. The defender, signed by Brendan Rodgers in January 2018 window, has been starring in a season long loan at Oostende and has won back his place in the Scotland squad, amid considerable interest from English Premier League sides. But Oostende are eager to take up their option to buy with suggestions that they could even sell him on the England making a vast profit, presumably at Celtic’s expense.

That though is going to be the Belgian side’s business and credit to them for helping Hendry get his career back on track.

Where this all leaves Celtic is with £3.5m coming in from New York Red Bulls, Oostende willing to pay £1.8m for Jack Hendry and Tunisian champions Esperance chasing the £2m rated Vakoun Bayo, Celtic could be doing a decent job of clearing up the cost of a Project Signing Policy that has not served the club well at all.

And while transfer money is being clawed back with these deals either concluded or in discussion, there are numerous other similar problems for the club to deal with, like what to do with Marian Shved or maybe plenty of other players currently out on loan (that list increased yesterday when Ross Doohan joined Dundee Utd on an emergency loan.

Meanwhile Celtic do not have a Director of Football or a Head Coach/ Manager and have 58,000 season tickets to sell.

About Author

The Celtic Star founder and editor, who has edited numerous Celtic books over the past decade or so including several from Lisbon Lions, Willie Wallace, Tommy Gemmell and Jim Craig. Earliest Celtic memories include a win over East Fife at Celtic Park and the 4-1 League Cup loss to Partick Thistle as a 6 year old. Best game? Easy 4-2, 1979 when Ten Men Won the League. Email editor@thecelticstar.co.uk

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