Should Celtic let Premier League clubs battle it out among themselves for Joe Allen, despite reportedly wanting to join the Hoops?
If rumours are to be believed, Joe Allen is keen on joining Celtic this summer. According to The Gambling Times, the former Swansea City and Liverpool midfielder is game to work with Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers for a third time in his professional career.
However, Allen, who was relegated with Stoke City last month, is attracting interest from a multitude of Premier League clubs – including Everton, West Ham United, Wolves and Newcastle United [The Gambling Times].
The 28-year-old might want to join the Hoops, but the burning question is whether Rodgers should break the bank to bring Allen – valued at around £18.3 million according to CIES, Football Observatory – to Parkhead.
Everton, Wolves and West Ham could all gazump Celtic in a bidding war, though the Scottish Premiership side, who could be in the Champions League proper again next season, can match his reported £29k-a-week salary [Silly Season].
Allen has another three years to run on his Stoke contract, so the Championship club, despite their relegation, will be asking for a significant sum and the more clubs that want him, the better it is for them.
Dropping £15 million or £20 million on Allen wouldn’t be a huge deal for certain Premier League clubs, but it certainly would be for the Bhoys and does Rodgers really want to obliterate the club’s transfer record for a central midfielder, when is already well stocked in that area?
Allen is a fine footballer but is he going to take Celtic to the next level in Europe? Arguably not, and therefore you wonder whether Rodgers should take what he would have to spend on Allen and use it on either a next-level striker, or a number of excellent players instead.
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