Celtic had been linked with Stoke City’s striker Tyrese Campbell in the last few weeks. Rangers have also joined the race for the English ace. Now reports from Daily Record mention that Celtic have informed Stoke City about their intention to hold a pre-contract talk with Campbell. Celtic will make their pitch to sign Campbell when Lennon returns from the Middle East where he is with the team for warm-weather training.
Campbell’s situation at Stoke City
Rangers are also likely to do the same as Steven Gerrard would hold talks with Campbell after some time. Hence, both the Glaswegian giants are seemingly going head to head for the England u-20 international. Campbell’s contract is set to expire in the summer of 2020, and he could move away on a free transfer.
Reports mention that Celtic will have to pay £400,000 as compensation for the forward. Premier League clubs like Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and Wolves are also said to be interested. However, they will have to spend more to sign the 20-year-old forward.
Stoke reportedly paid £1.75m to Manchester City in 2016 to sign the forward. If Campbell agrees on a pre-contract deal with either Celtic or Rangers, then Stoke City could end up losing money on him. Hence, we believe that they might prefer the striker to move to a Premier League club.
Reports earlier mentioned that new Stoke manager Michael O’Neil wants to keep hold of the striker and the Potters have tabled a new contract to Campbell. But the Englishman hasn’t committed to a deal as he is unhappy with his playing time. Campbell has 16 appearances in the Championship this season, but he has only managed five starts.
However, he might be on the verge of turning his fortunes as the striker has three goals and one assist in his last three games. The manager also reportedly sat down Campbell and talked with him. The upcoming week could be crucial with both the Glaswegian giants circling him.
Should Lennon go for him?
Celtic need a striker who could be backup to Odsonne Edouard. Campbell’s most significant assets are his strength and pace. He seems capable of coping with the physical challenges of the Premiership, and he can trouble the defenders with his runs. However, the forward is still an unproven quantity, and his goal-scoring record has been under the scanner. Never the less for just a meagre compensation fee, we believe that Campbell is worth going after and Lennon should look to seal the deal for him in this window.
