‘We’ve said no’: Manager warns Celtic must pay £1m-plus for reported target

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Celtic have been warned they will have to pay more than £1 million for Alfie Doughty after Charlton Athletic boss Lee Bowyer slammed the “silly” offers being made for his prized asset while speaking to London News Online.

The 20-year-old speed machine might have fewer than 12 months remaining on his contract.

But, as Celtic have discovered, that doesn’t mean Doughty will be allowed to walk out of The Valley for anything less than a seven-figure sum.

The Scottish Sun reported recently the Premiership champions had seen two bids rejected and were set to return with a third offer worth £800,000.

But, with Bowyer’s stinging criticism ringing in their ears, it seems Celtic should think twice about putting another lowball bid on Charlton’s table.

“People are taking liberties with their offers. They are silly offers which we wouldn’t entertain,” says the former Leeds United and England midfielder, who is also determined to keep number one striker Macauley Bonne at Charlton.

“For us as a club, why would we sell Macauley now? Unless it was some crazy offer then we wouldn’t sell Macauley. It would be tough to replace him. So it doesn’t make sense.

“Alfie comes into that bracket as well. Whatever the offer was (by Celtic) it’s not enough. That’s all that matters. It doesn’t matter if they’d offered £1m if we’ve said no and value him at more than that.”

The ball is in Celtic’s court then, with only two weeks of the transfer window remaining.

Will they take Bowyer’s advice and make a serious offer for one of the most exciting young talents south of the border? Or will they wait until June, when Doughty will be available for free?

By next summer, a man who has started the season in explosive fashion should have a few more admirers if he can start producing match-winning performances on a regular basis.