According to the latest report from BBC, Motherwell have accepted a bid for David Turnbull from Premier League side Norwich City. The Well reportedly accepted a £3m plus £250,000 in add-ons from the Canaries; an offer which was put up by Celtic last week.
Celtic’s bid was also accepted, but the player wasn’t able to reach a personal agreement with the reigning Scottish Champions. Turnbull’s camp insisted that the move was just not about the cash, but they wanted regular game time for the Scottish teenager.
Turnbull enjoyed a terrific campaign as he scored 16 goals from midfield last season. A season like that made him one of the hottest prospects in Scottish football, and it wasn’t a surprise to see Celtic going after him. However, after a lot of pulling and tugging, it seems like the Hoops are going to lose out on their target.
Celtic issued an ultimatum to Turnbull and his representative a few days back on Twitter by stating they have made a ‘magnificent offer’. But it’s clear now that offer wasn’t enough to lure the 19-year-old.
Why does Celtic need to sign a midfielder?
Turnbull goalscoring exploits would have made him an ideal player to have in the squad. Only Ryan Christie was able to hit the ten goal mark playing as a midfielder, and Neil Lennon would have loved to have a player who could potentially score ten odd goals from midfield. Tom Rogic has been struggling with form while Olivier Ntcham has admitted that leaving Celtic is a possibility this summer with clubs like Marseille and Lyon interested. If that departure happens, then it is more important for the club to sign someone like Turnbull.
What now for Lennon?
The player’s camp reportedly wanted assurance about first team football. Now given the quality which Celtic have, they couldn’t obviously commit to something like that. Scott Brown and Callum McGregor would be the preferred starters in central midfield.
In a slightly more attacking role, Ryan Christie and Tom Rogic are there. If Ntcham stays, then he is also a significant force to reckon with in all honesty. Therefore Turnbull should have been willing to fight for his place in the first team instead of looking for commitments from Celtic regarding game time.
Now if the player moves down south to join new Premier League entrants Norwich City, it would be ironic as he is likely to struggle more for game time in the English top flight. We think it’s time for Lennon to look forward now if they were satisfied with the offer they made earlier and look for new targets.
