Celtic made an offer to sign Henry Onyekuru in January – but, since moving to Everton, Atletico Madrid and Juventus have been alerted to his potential
Celtic appeared to set the ball rolling in the Europe-wide chase for Henry Onyekuru which dominated the gossip columns between January and June.
The Scottish Sun reported midway through the January transfer window that the Scottish champions had made a bid of £1 million for the prolific young striker, who had exploded onto the scene with a stunning second season at Belgian side KAS Eupen.
Eupen rejected the offer, however, demanding £4 million for Onyekuru. Though the striker himself seemed keen on the move, admitting ‘there are discussions with my agent and I believe everything will be sorted out soon’, per the Scottish Sun.
Spoiler alert, Onyekuru was not wearing green and white by the time the start of the new season rolled around, however. Instead, after months of speculation linking the Nigerian with almost every side in the Premier League and countless clubs across Europe, Everton sealed a £7 million deal before loaning Onyekuru back to Anderlecht for the season until he could obtain a work permit (BBC).
From £1m to £15m in nine months
And it’s a measure of the 20-year-old’s continued progress that The Mirror is now reporting that The Toffees could double their money – without Onyekuru even playing a game in Everton colours.
The report claims that Onyekuru’s record of six goals in nine games for Anderlecht has caught the eye of Juventus and Atletico Madrid – not to mention inflating his market value to £15 million.
From scoring for fun at one of Belgium’s smallest top flight clubs in January to running rings around PSG’s Brazilian right-back Dani Alves in the Champions League in October, Onyekuru’s rise is showing no signs of stopping.
You wonder whether Celtic will regret failing to stump up that £4 million fee nine months ago.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
