Odsonne Edouard could handle pressure of being Celtic’s first £10m buy

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Celtic are reportedly mulling over the possibility of spending £10 million to sign Odsonne Edouard permanently.

With The Scottish Sun reporting that Celtic’s current record spend on one player is £6 million, Brendan Rodgers would be forgiven for taking a considerable amount of time to mull over whether the Hoops would be making the right decision by signing Odsonne Edouard permanently.

The Scottish Sun reports that the Bhoys have until the end of the month to decide whether to keep the Frenchman beyond this season, with a permanent move set to cost them £10 million.

Edouard’s loan spell at Parkhead on paper hints that it would be a major gamble to make the 20-year-old the club’s first ever eight-figure signing. He scored 11 goals in 29 appearances in all competitions, but it must not be forgotten that he made just 12 league starts this past term and still managed to finish as the club’s second highest goalscorer in the Scottish Premiership.

And given his age, he arguably has the potential to make this past season’s tally look pedestrian in future years. But it may be because of his age that some Celtic fans may be concerned that a £10 million move would put too much pressure on his shoulders.

However, any slightly worried Hoops supporters perhaps only need to look at one moment of sheer brilliance from Edouard during the most recent Old Firm game at Ibrox to see that he may be one of those players who simply thrives when the pressure is applied.

Rodgers showed an enormous amount of faith in Edouard to bring him on with 23 minutes remaining of their clash with Rangers. The Gers had been superb in the opening minutes and taken the lead twice. And while Celtic had pegged them back twice in one of the most exhilarating halves in football you are ever likely to see, it was the home side who became favourites for the contest during the early stages of the second-half as Jozo Simunovic was sent off following a clash with Alfredo Morelos.

Rodgers seemed to roll the dice by bringing the PSG-owned forward on 10 minutes later, but the gamble paid off incredibly as Edouard scored a stunning winner that involved a delicious drop of the shoulder and touch inside that completely took two Gers defenders out of the equation.

With teammates seemingly in a slightly better position as he moved into the box, the striker could have easily taken the pressure off by trying to set someone else up, but he took the chance on and scored a stunning goal that has guaranteed hero status whether he stays this summer or not.

His promising record is encouraging, but that moment of class in particular, should perhaps convince Rodgers that Edouard may be the kind of player who would relish the opportunity to be the man responsible for the club’s transfer record being smashed.