Report: Rivaldo Coetzee omitted from Ajax CT squad as Celtic move edges closer

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South African international Rivaldo Coetzee looks set to become Celtic’s latest summer signing.

Brendan Rodgers did little to dampen the speculation surrounding Celtic’s reported move for Ajax Cape Town centre-back Rivaldo Coetzee earlier this week.

When asked about the possibility of the 20-year-old moving to Parkhead before the close of the transfer window, Rodgers told Sport25; “We’ll look to bring in quality if it becomes available. It’s something we have been working towards over the course of the last few weeks.”

And it appears that Coetzee, a South African international with 22 caps to his name already, is edging closer to a move.

The Daily Record report that he will be left out of the squad for Ajax Cape Town’s season opener against Golden Arrows on Saturday, with the expectation that he will swap Africa for Europe sooner rather than later.

Therefore, this is potentially positive news for the Scottish champions, who could do with defensive reinforcements as both Erik Sviatchenko and Dedryck Boyata are currently sidelined with injury.

The Daily Record reports that Coetzee could be available for just £750,000 this summer, despite having two years remaining on his contract.

The defender is well within Celtic’s price range and, on paper, would have little difficulty fitting into Rodgers’ system. After all, he is renowned for his intelligent positional sense and superb technical ability, two aspects Rodgers demands from the centre-backs at his disposal.