Scottish Premiership champions Celtic were reportedly battling QPR for Adam Maher before he made a move to Eredivisie high-flyers Utrecht.
Adam Maher has got used to being the difference maker for Utrecht.
At the age of 26, a man who was expected to become one of the best midfielders in Europe for the Netherlands and PSV Eindhoven is making up for lost time after years in the abyss.
In his last six Eredivisie games, Maher has produced three goals and two assists for a Utrecht side flying up the table to sit fifth heading into November. There was a wonder-strike against former employers PSV a week ago and on Saturday a winner away at Sparta Rotterdam.
Throw in his first goal from outside the box in six years, a 25-yard rocket against Vitesse, and suddenly it doesn’t seem so unlikely that Maher will finally add to the five Dutch caps he earned between 2012 and 2013.
And if anyone was wondering why Celtic were so keen to sign a diminutive little playmaker whose reputation had taken a battering after a couple of wasted seasons, according to De Telegraaf, Maher has emphatically provided the answer with his twinkling toes working their magic once again.
The report claimed that Celtic and Queens Park Rangers wanted a player who former Hoops hero Pierre Van Hooijdonk once called the Eredivisie’s very best, and set PSV back £7 million, before his career took a nosedive (Scottish Sun).
But with Maher back to his game-changing best at last, it would take a brave man to argue that Utrecht was not the perfect place for his rebirth to take place.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
