Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace were among the clubs linked with a move for the Celtic striker.
Celtic’s Moussa Dembele has insisted that the speculation surrounding his future is not to blame for his loss of form this season. Dembele is said to have been the subject of approaches from Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace in January [Scottish Sun and Scottish Sun].
Dembele who scored an impressive 32 goals in his first season at Celtic Park, has found the net on just nine occasions this time around – with injuries often making it hard for him to find any rhythm.
Only one of those strikes came in the four games between Christmas Day and January 31st – the respective dates of those alleged Brighton and Palace moves.
However, speaking to the Daily Record on Wednesday, the Celtic number 10 said: “It might have looked to other people outside that I was affected by speculation but that was never the case.
“It is not something that is new to me. I have been in this position many times in many career.
“For me, it is always about playing football and scoring goals. Nothing else matters to me. That is what my focus is. It is what it is now and it is what it will be until the end of the season.
“It has been difficult with the injuries but every player has injuries. It is just a part of football. But I feel good. I feel fit. I feel positive. I am always positive and I just want to go out and play.”
Brighton turned to PSV Eindhoven striker Jurgen Locadia instead of Dembele, while Crystal Palace eventually landed Alexander Sørloth from FC Midtjylland.
Meanwhile, Celtic will hope they can keep Dembele fit in the final weeks of the campaign, especially with their other main goalscorer, Leigh Griffiths, currently sidelined with a calf injury.
Would Celtic’s Dembele have been a good signing for Brighton/Palace?
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