Falkirk manager Peter Houston believes Celtic and Rangers are the only Scottish clubs who can afford to sign Craig Sibbald.
Falkirk’s Craig Sibbald celebrates victory
Falkirk boss Peter Houston has told The Scottish Sun that he thinks Celtic and Rangers are the only Scottish clubs who can afford to sign winger Craig Sibbald.
Sibbald, 21, has come up through the ranks with his hometown club, making his first-team debut at the age of just 16 back in 2011.
The winger has now racked up nearly 200 appearances for Falkirk, and he has hit ten goals for the club in 37 games this season, which sparked January interest.
The Daily Record claimed that Celtic and Rangers were both keen to sign Sibbald, with Nottingham Forest also monitoring his situation.
Sibbald’s contract expires at the end of this season, and he currently looks unlikely to sign a new one, meaning he could be playing his football elsewhere next season.
Any club who wants to sign Sibbald will have to pay a compensation fee, with The Scottish Sun claiming that Swedish outfit Ostersunds are interested in a surprise move to sign Sibbald this summer.
Now, Falkirk boss Peter Houston has told The Scottish Sun that he thinks there are only two Scottish clubs who can afford to sign Sibbald – Celtic and Rangers.
Scott Allan (L) in action with Falkirk’s Craig Sibbald
It remains unclear whether the two clubs rekindle their January interest, but Houston believes that Aberdeen won’t have the funds to make a move for Sibbald this summer, and feels that the youngster should stay with the club for another year rather than move on.
“If Craig doesn’t sign the offer we’ve made him, he can go in the summer — as long as people pay the compensation,” said Houston. “I’d say there’s not many teams in Scotland who can afford the compensation, other than Celtic and maybe Rangers. I don’t know if even Aberdeen would be willing to pay that kind of money. Is there a Swedish club? There might be and I have no idea if there’s anybody in England or Scotland interested in him.”
“We’ve said all along that Sibbs needs to test himself somewhere, but I’d rather keep him for another year and then let him walk out of the door for nothing next year. If Sibbs’ agent gets a club willing to pay us what we’re due, then I’ll be the first to shake his hand and wish him good luck,” he added.
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