Celtic’s £4.5m man pictured at airport as he jets in to sign for new club

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Albian Ajeti has been pictured in Istanbul Airport as Celtic’s forgotten man closes in on a move to Turkish Super Lig outfit Gazientep. 

With Oh Hyeon-Jun out of action for a couple of months and with interest in Brondby frontman Mathias Kvistgaarden played down, you would have been forgiven for wondering if Albian Ajeti was ripe for a recall under Brendan Rodgers. 

Especially after Celtic drew a blank in each of their last two games; crashing out of the Scottish League Cup at Kilmarnock before failing to break down the massed ranks of St Johnstone. 

But, with the Daily Record reporting that Celtic have agreed to sell their £4.5 million misfit for only £500,000, any hopes Ajeti may have harboured of a fresh start post-Ange Postecoglou have gone up in smoke. 

Celtic will sell Albian Ajeti

Gazientep have fought off competition from rival Super Lig clubs to secure the Swiss international’s signature. And Ajeti was pictured in Istanbul Airport on Friday, awaiting a flight to take him to his new home, via Gazientep Pesula.

Ajeti is expected to touch down in Turkey’s sixth most populated city at around 7.30pm local time. 

Sead Haksabanovic could follow him out the door, too. Haksabanovic has reportedly agreed terms with Greek outfit PAOK, his new club’s head coach confirming his desire to bring in at least one new winger before the window closes. 

“I said a couple of weeks ago I felt there would be players that would want to go. Play games and start (elsewhere),” Rodgers tells The Herald today. “Haksa is one of those who will look for game time and want to be a starter. So I would expect him to be moved on.”

Ajeti, meanwhile, spent last season on loan at Sturm Graz. The Austrian outfit did not have the funds, however, to turn a temporary deal into a permanent one.

“Albian Ajeti will leave Graz,” sporting director Andreas Schicker tells the Kronen Zeitung. “We have decided not to exercise the option-to-buy (clause) with Celtic.  

“Although Albian is an exciting player, he unfortunately didn’t get into the rhythm he had hoped for. And the transfer fee was too high.”