Philip Zinckernagel claims he has rejected free transfer to Celtic

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Watford have completed the signing of Bodo/Glimt winger Philip Zinckernagel – but he could have ended up in Scotland.

Bodo/Glimt have starred under Kjetil Knutsen, and their three attackers have attracted major interest.

Left winger Jens Petter Hauge joined AC Milan in October, and TEAMtalk claimed in December that Celtic are in the hunt for striker Kasper Junker.

Right-sided winger Zinckernagel has now moved on at the end of his Bodo contract, and has decided to join Watford.

The 26-year-old has penned a five-and-a-half year deal with Watford, and his record in Norway was hugely impressive.

The Dane smashed a ridiculous 19 goals and 24 assists in just 28 games for Bodo last season, meaning Watford have landed a hugely exciting attacker.

Now, Zinckernagel has been quoted by the Daily Record as saying that he had interest from Celtic, alongside Schalke and teams from Turkey, the Netherlands, France, Saudi Arabia and Eastern Europe.

Zinckernagel suggests the sporting challenge with Watford is what he wanted, branding their facilities ‘absolutely insane’ whilst giving him the best chance of playing in the Premier League.

“I could have chosen to go to clubs where I would have earned more money,” said Zinckernagel. “I preferred the sporting challenge to money, not that it’s a bad package I’ve got at Watford and it’s a five-and-a-half-year contract. I had offers from clubs in Turkey, the Netherlands, Schalke in Germany, France, Saudi Arabia and a lot in Eastern Europe. And additionally, Celtic were also involved.”

“If I didn’t take the opportunity now, I might never get the chance again. It was now or never. The opportunity to be able to play in the Premier League will be greater here in Watford, I think. It will be a dream come true to get there. The facilities at Watford are absolutely insane. The canteen is like a five star restaurant. It’s a whole different world for me. In training, there are more coaches than there were players in Glimt,” he added.