If the report from Swiss publication Blick is believed to be true, Celtic are eyeing a summer swoop for Dundee United goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist. They, however, are not alone in the hunt with Ipswich Town keeping close tabs on the former Switzerland youth international.
The 29-year-old had his spells at local side FC Therwil and FC Basel before joining the youth ranks of Aston Villa back in January 2009. There he spent his time with the reserves and was later loaned out to the lower leagues of the English pyramid for first-team football. It didn’t work for him in England though and a return to his homeland (with Vaduz) helped him clinch the ‘number 1’ status.
Meanwhile, Dundee United scouted him in the summer of 2018 and secured his signing alongside Matej Rakovan. But the Swiss custodian got the nod for the starting role and played an integral part in their promotion to the Scottish Premiership a couple of years later.
Siegrist is still the first-choice keeper at the club who went on to make 32 league starts before missing out on the final four fixtures with a broken wrist. The Tangerines have done enough to retain the top-flight status against the odds and the stewardship of the former Villa prodigy has drawn the attention of many including the Glasgow hotshots.
Celtic failed miserably last summer to replace Craig Gordon and Fraser Forster. Vasilis Barkas is yet to meet the expectations since securing a high-profile move from AEK Athens a year ago and is rumoured to return to Greece to get his career back on track. The Hoops need an overhaul in the upcoming window and therefore can’t afford to spend millions on a shot-stopper once again unless they manage to generate enough fund from selling the wantaway and fringe players.
Why Celtic Must Make The Most Of Siegrist’s Contract Situation
Siegrist, on the other hand, has entered the final year of his contract at Tannadice Park. The Celtic target has played coy over his future and highlighted his desire to ‘compete at the highest level’ and ‘test’ himself in the forthcoming future.
“I have one more year after this summer, we constantly talk but the transfer window isn’t even open so there is no point trying to discuss something that might happen in the future.
“That’s a bit pointless so like I said, I am under contract and if something comes up that we need to speak about then I’m sure we will speak about it.”
The custodian is keeping his options open as revealed in a recent interview with The Courier.
Although the Hoops have Scott Bain and Conor Hazard in their ranks, the arrival of Siegrist would bolster their options between the sticks. He has proved his worth in the Premiership and Celtic, thus, must step up the chase to secure his services ahead of other suitors.
