Celtic were heavily linked with Brazilian defender Fabricio Bruno in the January transfer window. The defender then plied his trade for Brazilian outfit Cruzeiro who were going through significant financial trouble at that time. Cruzeiro were relegated for the first time in their history, and the Hoops were looking to take advantage of that situation.
However, as we known Celtic never managed to bring in Bruno in January. The 24-year-old instead went on to join another Brazilian side in the form of RB Bragantino. The centre back took his former club to court over unpaid wages, and he was allowed to repeal his contract with them.
Bruno explains why the move to Celtic didn’t go through
Now, the defender has gone on to reveal what went wrong in January. Bruno said (Daily Record), ”The only way out was to go to court. Cruzeiro owed me four months in wages and ten months of image rights. It all started when Celtic came to talk to me, and I went to Cruzeiro together with my representative.”
”But Cruzeiro refused to negotiate with them. It was a difficult situation, and I had to look at the personal side of it. Some fans called me ungrateful and mercenary, but it was the other way around. I tried to tell to them to negotiate with Celtic, but they would not. I had no choice, but to take Cruzeiro to court. Celtic came back for me, but they had to pull out because I wouldn’t get a decision from the court until February 6 and that was too late for them. It was very unfortunate for them.”
It seemed like Celtic were firmly interested in the 24-year-old, but the defender’s legal battle was the reason why the Hoops were unable to get him in January.
Should Celtic return for him again?
Celtic have a decent amount of options at the back. However, they might have to replace Jozo Simunovic, who is in the final few months of his deal. Bruno is a physically dominant force in defence as he stands in at 6ft3 and is strong in the air. The Brazilian is also known for his ability to play out from the back which should suit Celtic’s need given the way they dominate possession. Bruno isn’t the fastest across the pitch, but he does read the game well.
We think that the Brazilian is definitely worth considering in the future transfer window. The defender has his contract with his current club until December 2020. Hence, that is an indication that maybe Bruno is still looking for a move as he didn’t commit to a long term contract.
