Celtic defensive target Carl Starfelt started for Rubin Kazan this afternoon against Khimki in a friendly match. Celtic had been linked with the Swedish Internationalist last week and tipped to make a £4.2m move by the Swedish media after Fabrizio Romano after talks were opened between the clubs. Although he was named in the line-up meaning that no deal has been done yet.
Celtic are in direct contact to negotiate personal terms with Swedish centre back Carl Starfelt as potential Ajer replacement. Opening bid set to be made to Rubin Kazan and talks now started. ⚪️🟢 #Celtic #RubinKazan
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 6, 2021
The player was said to miss training the other day as a deal edged closer; however, the player is clearly back in the first team setup with Rubin Kazan even if they look to hopefully seal a deal with Celtic in the coming days. It would probably stand to reason that Kazan are keeping the player involved in order to push Celtic into a deal.
The 26-year-old made 33 appearances last season, scoring 3 times and assisting 3 times but he also boasts the highest passing accuracy in the Russian league with an impressive 91.4%. He certainly fits the profile that Celtic are looking for and if a deal can be done, it would mean that Kris Ajer would certainly be headed for the Paradise exit.