Ryan Christie could be set to snub a contract extension with Celtic for a move to Bournemouth, according to The Scotsman. They claim that the Cherries, who are chasing promotion under Scott Parker, are favourites to sign Christie.
The 26-year-old had been reportedly keen on a move to the Premier League but this report seems to suggest that the Championship outfit are the frontrunners to sign the Scotland Internationalist. It would certainly be a stepdown for Christie if he were to swap Celtic for the South Coast.
Celtic have held discussions with the playmaker’s representatives but a decision needs to be made as Christie is free to leave for free as early as January. If he decided that his career needed to progress and left to a Premier League club then there would likely have been some degree of acceptance from the support but if the ex-ICT man goes to Bournemouth, there would be many questioning the motives of Christie.
Christie has 41 goals and 45 assists in 151 appearances for the club. The attacking midfielder looked to be back at his best under Ange Postecoglou but was not as impressive in the defeat at Ibrox. He has the energy and the quality on the ball that Celtic require in the age of Ange but those characteristics were missing as Celtic fell to a narrow defeat against Rangers.