Wigan Athletic are soon going to be taken over by Hong Kong-based consortium, and that could spell bad news for Celtic who were in pursuit of Wigan’s playmaker Nick Powell. It is believed that the new owners have their priorities already set out and keeping hold of Powell is considered to be one of the topmost priority for the club.
Not too long ago reports were doing the round that Powell had rejected a new contract with the Latics and Celtic were one of the teams in the summer who were linked with him. However, it’s clear that the new owners don’t want to let one of their best players leave who is in the last year of his contract by making him sign a new deal.
The Hoops can still land him, and if the player isn’t going to sign a new deal, then we believe the Glaswegian giants can get Powell on a cut-price deal as he is in the final year of his contract. However, that seems unlikely now as the Latics are trying to keep hold of their best talents at DW Stadium.
Celtic have lost a bit of firepower up front after the sale of Moussa Dembele to Lyon and someone like Powell would have added the cutting edge in the final third. The Englishman is an attacking midfielder but can play as a centre-forward as well, and his passing, finishing and work rate would have made him a top signing at Park Head.
The former Manchester United player played a crucial part last season in getting the Latics promoted to the Championship. The 24-year-old managed 15 goals and seven assists last campaign and this season again he has hit the ground running by already scoring 4 and assisting five times.
Powell would have seamlessly fitted into Rodgers’ system, and his versatility would have been a major boon for the Hoops. The Bhoys currently have only two out and out strikers in the form of Odsonne Edouard and Leigh Griffiths and Powell’s ability to turn up as a striker would have come in handy.
However, the club can still go after him hard in the January window even if the player goes on to sign a new deal. Rodgers should have a decent amount of money to spend in the transfer market after the £20m sale of Dembele to Lyon. Therefore, the club can use a good chunk of that cash to land Powell.
The Englishman has all the ability to be a hit at Park Head, but this recent piece of development is indeed bad news for the Hoops if they were really keen on this creative playmaker as Wigan currently seem to be prioritising on keeping hold of him.
