Celtic have missed out on the signing of Martin Minchev after the striker opted to seal a move to Czech giants Sparta Prague instead, as reported by Tribune.
Back in May, Glasgow Times reported that the Scottish Premiership champions had identified the exciting Bulgaria international as a potential £1.4 million summer target.
A speedy and versatile forward who loves to race past defenders with a burst of explosive acceleration, Minchev hit the target six times for Cherno More in the 2019/20 season and a move up the footballing ladder was always likely to come his way.
But despite being offered the chance to join a Celtic side who have set Virgil van Dijk, Ousmane Dembele, Moussa Dembele and co on the path to stardom, the 19-year-old has snubbed Neil Lennon and co to seal a switch to the Czech capital instead.
“I feel good because Sparta is a big club. I have ambitions to perform well there,” Minchev explains after his new employers won the Czech Cup this week.
“Everything went great. I was met at the airport, then I passed the medical tests and I was taken to the stadium. Everything went as it should.”
Minchev adds that Tomas Rosicky, the former Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund play-maker (below), helped to lure him to Prague in his role as Sparta’s sporting director.
So if Celtic want to reinforce their forward line this summer, they will have to look elsewhere.
Edouard might be determined to stay around for the ‘ten in a row’ party, but whether Lennon can rely on Leigh Griffiths and Vakoun Issouf Bayo remains the subject of serious debate in Glasgow.
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