Do Celtic still have a chance of bringing Partizan Belgrade star Pavlovic to the Scottish Premiership after Neil Lennon’s scouting mission.
It is only a matter of time before Strahinja Pavlovic follows in the footsteps of Stevan Jovetic, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Pedraj Mijatovic and co in graduating from the esteemed Partizan Belgrade finishing school.
The teenage defender is making waves all over Europe right now with his vast potential recognised by a shock nomination for the prestigious Golden Boy award, a trophy which has previously been held aloft by the likes of Sergio Aguero, Matthijs de Ligt and Kylian Mbappe.
A classy, left-footed centre-half, Pavlovic has a one-way ticket to the top with his performances earning comparisons to fellow Serb and Fiorentina star Nikola Milenkovic, a defender so highly-rated he was valued at £53 million when Manchester United came knocking with then-manager Jose Mourinho apparently a big fan (Stadiosport).
Tuttomercatoweb suggests that Pavlovic, however, is available for a fee closer to £4.5 million and that means a move to Celtic cannot be discounted.
According to the Sun, Neil Lennon made a personal trip to watch Pavlovic in action during Partizan Belgrade’s Europa League qualifier against Connah’s Quay in the summer. And, reacting to the news via the Daily Record, the 6ft 4ins giant admitted that he was ‘flattered’ to have caught the eye of the Scottish Premiership champions.
Now, Celtic are not exactly short of options at centre-back right now but Nir Bitton and Hatem Abd Elhamed are hardly naturals in the position while Jozo Simunovic has spent far too much time out of action with injury.
At £4.5 million, maybe Pavlovic is worth the punt – before he joins Milenkovic in the £50 million bracket.
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