Since Brendan Rodgers took charge at Celtic Park, a name that has been continuously linked with a switch to Parkhead was Aston Villa winger Scott Sinclair and the Hoops have finally been able to strike a deal for the 27-year-old on their fifth attempt. The Daily Mail claimed that Celtic have had four bids worth £1m, £1.25m, £2.2m and £2.75m rejected by the Championship club previously who were holding out for a £5m valuation of the winger they signed from Manchester City a year back but finally settled for a £4m fee as per The Scotsman.
The 27-year-old moving to Parkhead reunites him with Brendan Rodgers under whom he had the most productive phase of his career. The duo worked their magic together at Swansea City where Sinclair had an incredible record of 36 goals and nine assists from 91 games. An ill-fated move to Manchester City in 2012 took the Englishman’s career to a whole different path.
Sinclair looked like a player who was destined for glory when he used to grace the pitch for the Swans but his career never really hit the top gear. In his three seasons at Etihad, Sinclair managed to get just 19 appearances for the Sky Blues and Sinclair looked pretty much like a failed talent.
One failed loan spell and one mediocre one with Midlands clubs West Brom and Aston Villa respectively was followed by a permanent move to Villa Park last summer but it failed to bring the winger’s career back to life. Sinclair had a dismal season at Villa Park last time around failing to inspire the Villans to secure their Premier League status netting just twice from 27 Premier League games.
The stocks have fallen massively for the 27-year-old over the last few dismal years and a move to the north of the border can bring some glory back to his resume. Sinclair has done nothing to attract a Premier League club and staying in England plying his trade in the championship was certainly a much inferior option than to play for the Scottish giants.
Even though Sinclair never really managed to reach the heights in English football, Scottish Premiership should be a cakewalk for his quality and experience. Celtic do have enough quality options on the flanks but Sinclair trumps each of those players courtesy to his top-level experience.
While arch rivals Rangers bolstering their squad with experienced players like Barton, Kranjcar, and Hill, Celtic needed to give a strong reply and a deal for Sinclair, who has still 3-4 years of his prime years left in him, is the perfect reply from Rodgers.
