Former Hibs boss Pat Fenlon says that Celtic Griffiths is a natural goalscorer.
Celtic’s Leigh Griffiths celebrates scoring their third goal
Former Hibs boss Pat Fenlon said that Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths is a bigger asset for the Bhoys than Moussa Dembele.
Dembele, 20, enjoyed a superb 2016/17 campaign for Celtic, where he scored 32 goals for the club. His meteoric rise has not gone unnoticed, and has caught the attention of heavyweight European clubs like AC Milan, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, and Everton.
The French forward is one of the hottest properties in Europe at the moment, and Celtic value him at around £30 million.
However, Fenlon, 48, who helped develop Griffiths at Easter Road, believes he would take the 26-year-old striker over Dembele any day.
Griffiths, who recently scored two wonderful goals from freekicks for Scotland against England, has attracted interest from Premier League clubs Newcastle United and West Brom.
Fenlon says that the Bhoys striker belong at the top level, and hopes that he stays with Celtic for a long time.
Celtic’s Moussa Dembele scores their fourth goal
Griffiths, who scored 18 goals in all competitions last season, had said recently that, he doesn’t wish to leave the club anytime soon.
“People talk about Dembele being worth over £20million — but I’d have Leigh over him all day,” said Fenlon, as quoted by The Scottish Sun.
“It doesn’t matter who he is playing against, Leigh will score goals. Look at the England game. That takes talent and bravery to score those two free-kicks.
“I watched the game and when the first free-kick was awarded, I knew Leigh would score. I had every faith in him because he is a natural goalscorer at any level.
“When he stood over the second one, I thought it would take a lot to do it again — but that’s Leigh.
“I get a kick out of seeing him do well for Celtic and Scotland because I always believed in him. I always felt Leigh had the talent to play at Celtic, and I hope he stays there for a long time.”
General view of Celtic Park
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