Could Celtic have real opportunity as Charly Musonda eyes Chelsea exit?

Follow us on Google Discover

Charly Musonda wants to leave Chelsea for regular first-team football – and he could take on a starring role at Celtic.

Charly Musonda’s long-term future at Chelsea has been in doubt ever since that ill-judged Instagram post seemingly slamming the Premier League champions for his lack of first-team opportunities.

The youngster has a point, having to wait until September to finally make his long-awaited first start for the club. With Willian, Eden Hazard, Pedro and co ahead of him in the pecking order, however, patience is certainly a virtue.

Thought that is not necessarily a trait Musonda has a lot of right now. FootMercato reports that, despite Chelsea manager Antonio Conte tipping the Belgian for a bright future at Stamford Bridge, Musonda has informed The Blues that he wants to leave in January and he will not extend a contract that expires in 2019.

Patience dries up

The report adds that, at 21 years of age, Musonda believes now is the time to start playing regular first-team football – and Premier League rivals Arsenal have emerged as a surprising candidate for his signature.

Though Musonda’s desire to swap Chelsea’s second string for a place in a starting XI should enthuse summer suitors Celtic. The Daily Record claimed that Brendan Rodgers wanted to bring one of Europe’s most talented young prospects to Parkhead in July and was willing to pay £5 million to make the deal happen.

The Scotsman also added that Celtic were still interested when the reports first broke last month that Musonda could leave Chelsea on loan in January.

And while swapping the Premier League for the Scottish top flight may seem like a step down, Celtic have proven to be a launchpad for a number of hugely promising young players, not least Moussa Dembele and Patrick Roberts.

A starring role beckons for Musonda at Celtic.