OLIVIER NTCHAM is the subject of interest from Premier League side Southampton. TEAMTalk are reporting that the St Mary’s club will eye another raid of the Scottish Champions after Armstrong, Van Dijk, Forster and Wanyama all made the trip to the south coast of England.
The Saints are interested in signing the Celtic midfielder after missing out on Weston McKennie from Schalke. The 24-year-old has started the last three games but had been forced to settle for the substitutes bench for Neil Lennon’s side before that. The Champions League exit at the hands of Ferencvaros will have put Premier League clubs on high alert as to the Frenchman’s availability.
The fee of £20m has been discussed and that fee appears to be something that could force the club into making a decision. Ntcham has two years remaining on his current deal and with Southampton gearing up to replace Hojberg, they may be tempted to make him an offer of first team football with a reunion with Stuart Armstrong also on the cards.
With all of that said, as a result of the Champions League fallout, Ntcham may look to push for a move despite what the club have at stake this season. David Turnbull signed last week and Tom Rogic is still at the club so Celtic may think that it could be time to cash in on Ntcham as not to risk losing him for a cheaper deal next season.
Olivier Ntcham is one of the club’s top players but finding a place for him in the starting XI appears to be difficult. Lennon, Kennedy and Strachan will know his abilities at training but they need to find a way to get him into the team. Ntcham should be one of the first names on the team sheet every week, he is fast, skilful and has an eye for a pass. Not only does he do the dirty work, he also has a final product.
Ntcham signed from Manchester City in 2017 and has made 123 appearances, scoring 23 times as Celtic have enjoyed phenomenal success.
