According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, Celtic are eyeing a summer swoop for Rennes sensation Brandon Soppy. But they are not going to have a free run for the teenager with other French outfits keeping close tabs as well to secure his services ahead of the upcoming term.
Celtic are interested in signing Brandon Soppy from Rennes [19, huge talent] as new left back. Talks opened – but there are also French clubs in the race. ?? #Celtic #Rennes #transfers
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 10, 2021
The 19-year-old right fullback got promoted to the first-team set-up a year ago. He remained as the understudy to Hamari Traoré and went on to make 12 senior appearances across competitions. The Frenchman is rated highly back in his homeland and the Hoops have already seen a bid in the region of £3m rejected for the teenager (as claimed by journalist Ekrem Konur).
??#Celtic have offered #Rennes £ 3million for #BrandonSoppy.
??#Brandon has a lot of offers. Rennes are continuing contract extension talks with Brandon. pic.twitter.com/gBVydc2Bvo
— Ekrem KONUR (@Ekremkonur) July 11, 2021
Celtic, however, have received a significant boost in pursuit of Soppy. If a report from the L’Equipe (as cited by the Daily Record) is believed to be true, the Brittany side have set a valuation of around £ 4.3m for their prized asset. Lorenz Assignon would now occupy the backup role and Rennes, therefore, would look to gain a financial boost over losing the Blues youth international for nothing (as his contract runs down next summer) amid the ongoing TV rights crisis in French football.
Why Celtic Should Secure A Deal For Brandon Soppy
Soppy is highly rated for his relentless overlapping runs, pace, swift footwork, cut insides as well as dribbling attributes. He has shown enough maturity already at such a tender age, whereas the balance of his game between attack and defence should see him shine as a modern-day fullback.
Meanwhile, the Bhoys have decided not to convert Jonjoe Kenny’s loan move into a permanent deal. The Everton youngster was roped in as the replacement for Jeremie Frimpong, but an array of underwhelming outings could not convince the board to return for the youngster.
Ange Postecoglou is in desperate need of reinforcements and the lack of options down the right must have left him anxious ahead of the crucial Champions League qualifier against Midtjylland. Anthony Ralston is not yet ready to step in and deliver week in week out and Celtic, thus, must bank on Soppy’s display on the field as they did for Frimpong a couple of years back.
