Celtic’s Dorus de Vries claims he had a chance to go back to the Premier League last summer.
Celtic goalkeeper Dorus de Vries has told The Scottish Sun that he had interest from a Premier League team over the summer – but the Bhoys wouldn’t let him leave the club.
One of Brendan Rodgers’ first moves as Celtic manager was to bring goalkeeper De Vries to the club from Nottingham Forest, reuniting with the Dutch shot-stopper.
Rodgets worked with De Vries at Swansea City, and even attempted to sign him for Liverpool, meaning their reunion at Celtic Park was far from a surprise – despite Crag Gordon’s presence in goal.
De Vries made just five appearances in all competitions for Celtic last season, as whilst he initially displaced Gordon, he slipped back into a second-choice role – and that continued earlier this season.
However, Gordon picked up an injury that will keep him out for a number of weeks, and De Vries is now Celtic’s first-choice goalkeeper, even after the recent signing of Scott Bain.
With Gordon out, it’s now De Vries’ position to lose, and the Dutchman has now opened up on his situation at Celtic Park, admitting to The Scottish Sun that he considered leaving the club over the summer.
De Vries claims that a Premier League club wanted to sign him, but Celtic wouldn’t let him leave the club, and he had to try and move on from the idea of heading back to England.
The 37-year-old now feels happy as he is playing, and feels that moving on over the summer wasn’t a guarantee of success, and he must now use his loyalty to Rodgers to continue his career with Celtic.
“Yes, of course, I did. In the summer, there was some interest,” said De Vries. “I could have gone back to the Premier League, but, at that moment, I wasn’t allowed to go. Simple as. You have to respect that and think of other possibilities. Besides the not playing bit, which always hurts, all the other bits were really good. The coaching staff keep you going. I’m really fortunate with my goalkeeping coach, who keeps me going.”
“Like I said, there were possibilities in the summer, but there was no option of going. You have to respect that decision and make the most of it. I was not allowed to move. It was as simple as that. You can’t mope about it. You can’t go and sit in the corner and cry. That would be no use. You have to take it on the chin and try to make the most of the situation. I also felt loyalty to the gaffer. I’ve worked with him in the past and he’s been great for me. I really enjoyed working with him at Swansea.”
“Plus you never know what’s going to happen when you move. There are a lot of teams down south and it might be that you are fighting relegation. There might be a change of manager or a change of ownership. How many times have we seen that happen? Football is crazy like that and I had to take into account what I have here. I have great support and the respect of my team-mates and the staff. Am I happy with how it’s gone? At the moment. I’m happiest when I am playing and right now I am playing,” he added.
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