Premier League clubs Arsenal and Chelsea have been heavily linked with a move for Celtic FC forward Odsonne Edouard in the summer.
Odsonne Edouard joined the Bhoys in 2018 from PSG and this season the 22-year-old has already scored 27 goals and made 19 assists in just 45 games for the Glasgow club.
And this is why he has been tipped to move out of the SPFL in the summer and head for England – possibly London.
Both Arsenal and Chelsea are on the lookout for a new striker this summer since the Gunners are expected to lose Alexandre Lacazette while Lampard has been wanting to add more firepower up front alongside Tammy Abraham.
And both these clubs were expected to make a move for Odsonne Edouard since he could be a really cheap signing as compared to some top-level forward in Europe.
Now though it seems like both these sides are going to find it really hard to sign the 22-year-old since as per reports, the player is ready to sign a new deal with Celtic.
Right now his current contract with the Bhoys expires in 2022 but he is really happy with life in Scotland and wants to put pen on paper to a new deal.
Football Insider are claiming: “A Celtic source has told Football Insider that the French striker’s camp have been reluctant to enter into “serious” negotiations over an extension to his current agreement, which expires in 2022.
“He is happy and settled at Parkhead, where he is the outstanding player in a team targeting a fourth consecutive domestic treble when the Scottish season eventually recommenced.”
If this report is indeed true then Arsenal and Chelsea will find it really tough to sign Odsonne Edouard in the summer since now the Bhoys will be able to hold out for a huge transfer price.
Right now experts have claimed that Celtic are expected to quote around 50 million pounds for the forward but if they can convince Odsonne Edouard to sign a new deal before the summer transfer window begins then this amount will exponentially go up.
And we are not sure if either of the two London clubs would want to pay anything more than 50m pounds for an SPFL forward.
UPDATE: Odsonne Edouard ready to leave?
Despite some reports claiming that Celtic are not ready to part ways with Odsonne Edouard, Danny Mills has claimed that the forward moving out of Scotland is inevitable and even Celtic have an idea about this.
According to Mills, Celtic know they can lose the Frenchman at the end of the season which is why they will have alternates ready.
“They know it is inevitable,” he told Football Insider.
“When the Premier League or La Liga come knocking there is every chance you will lose out because financially they cannot compete. Whether you like it or not that is a fact.
“Football is not just about money but it is a huge factor. It is probably like Southampton. They have to make sure they have replacements ready. When you are Celtic you have to have a plan for the future.
“They will have two or three lined up to replace Edouard. People will be in mind because if the big boys come in the likelihood is they are going to lose people.”
This will be a huge boost for Arsenal as well as Chelsea who both have been heavily linked with the forward and especially Mikel Arteta will be very pleased since he could lose Alexandre Lacazette to Barcelona in the summer.
