Omar Elabdellaoui continues to be linked with Scottish Premiership champions Celtic – but will he stay with Greek giants Olympiakos instead?
If Olympiakos’ Champions League qualifier against Krasnodar was a chance for Omar Elabdellaoui to prove that he belongs at the top level, he certainly passed this particular acid test with flying colours.
According to the Scottish Daily Mail (17 August, back page), Celtic have identified a Norway international who has formerly represented Manchester City and Hull as Mikael Lustig’s long-term successor.
It will take around £4 million to convince Olympiakos to sell – but on Wednesday night’s evidence, the Greek giants should be doing everything they can to keep Elabdellaoui in Piraeus if they want to progress in Europe and take back the Super League title after two barren years.
Elabdellaoui was at his dynamic best as Olympiakos swept aside Krasnodar in front of a vociferous Karaiskakis Staidum crowd, captaining his side to a stunning 4-0 win which pretty much guarantees their place in the Champions League proper. If this is his final appearance in the famous red and white stripes, he’s certainly signed off in style.
With Hatem Abd Elhamed set to miss Celtic’s Europa League decider against AIK Stockholm on Thursday night, Neil Lennon only has the young and inexperienced Anthony Ralston as back-up.
So with Elabdellaoui, Olympiakos’ loss would certainly be Celtic’s gain.
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