Shanghai Port midfielder Aaron Mooy is interested in a return to Britain, with Celtic needing to pay around £4 million to reunite Ange Postecoglou with his former Australia international, as reported by 90Min.
If a squad who finished 25 points behind Old Firm rivals Rangers last season were hoping that Postecoglou would be one of those ‘arm around the shoulder’ sort of man-managers, we’re afraid you are out of luck.
The straight-talking Australian is as uncompromising as they come; a teacher and a mentor but never a ‘friend’. Then again, that may be exactly what’s required for a Hoops side who lost their way dramatically under Neil Lennon.
Mooy knows from experience that Postecoglou is not an easy man to please. Back in 2017, the then-Huddersfield Town talisman was suddenly and brutally dropped from the starting XI for a huge World Cup qualifier between Australia and Syria.
“Of course I was angry I wasn’t playing,” Mooy told SMH, clearly unhappy about the way Postecoglou dumped him with barely a moment’s notice.
Four years is a long time, however, and a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then.
Should Mooy and Postecoglou be reunited at Celtic – Eurosport claimed on Tuesday that the 30-year-old is the Celtic boss’s number one transfer target – you would think that player and manager would have no problems putting those old differences to one side.
90Min backs up Eurosport’s earlier claims, reporting that Mooy, rather than Crystal Palace’s James McCarthy, is the midfielder Postecoglou wants above all others.
Given that Postecoglou is famed for his Guardiola-influenced, death-by-a-thousand-passes approach, it is tempting to wonder whether Mooy could be Celtic’s answer to Xavi.
A man who shone south of the border at Huddersfield and Brighton could certainly claim to be the most naturally-gifted midfielder in Scotland, should Celtic pay the £4 million fee required to sign him from China-based outfit Shanghai Port.
The report adds that Mooy, a one-time St Mirren youngster, is keen on a return to UK soil after just one year in Asia.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
