Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata is out of contract at the end of the season.
Pundit and former Celtic striker John Hartson has told The Scottish Sun that it would be a ‘no-brainer’ for the club to sell Dedryck Boyata for £7million to £8million in January.
The Bhoys appear to be hitting top form now after a shaky start to the season, bu the situation surrounding Boyata’s future in Glasgow rumbles on.
A 2015 signing from Manchester City, Boyata has become a key part of the Celtic defence, and he even featured for Belgium at the 2018 World Cup in Russia off the back of his displays for the Bhoys.
The problem for Celtic was that he went to the World Cup with just one year left on his contract, and having refused to sign a new deal, he even removed himself from contention for a Champions League qualifier against AEK Athens.
The 27-year-old has returned to the Celtic fold after a failed £8million move from Fulham, but he still isn’t signing a new deal – and looks set to move on in 2019.
Boyata could move for free at the end of the season, but there is also the lingering threat of him signing a pre-contract agreement in January, unless Celtic decide to sell.
Now, pundit Hartson has suggested that Celtic need to deal with the situation, and thinks that the centre back ‘has to go’ in January, but only on the condition that Celtic receive a bid of around £8million again, claiming it’s a no-brainer for Celtic to let him go and press on with the defenders they have.
“They need to get Scott Brown back, they need to get Leigh Griffiths back, and they need to deal with the Dedryck Boyata situation, because he’ll probably leave in January,” said Hartson. “If Celtic get a big bid for Boyata, seven or eight million, then he has to go. It’s a no-brainer. They have still got Kris Ajer, Jack Hendry, Jozo Simunovic and Filip Benkovic, so I think it’s a real possibility Boyata could go,” he added.
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