Scottish Premiership rivals Celtic and Rangers are reportedly battling to sign Rodrigo Riquelme from La Liga powerhouses Atletico Madrid.
Celtic would be the perfect destination for Atletico Madrid’s Rodrigo Riquelme to fulfil his potential, Hoops legend Alan Thompson has told ReadCeltic.
It’s fair to say this is a transfer rumour that came right out of the blue.
According to Marca, a Madrid-based attacker with a £26 million release clause in his contract could be on his way to Glasgow in a deal that would raise eyebrows all over Europe.
19-year-old Riquelme is due to become a free agent at the end of the campaign and his impending ability, it seems, has not passed either Celtic or Rangers by.
And Thompson is keen to point out that the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Kristoffer Ajer, Moussa Dembele and Odsonne Edouard have benefited immensely from moving to the green half of Glasgow right at the start of their careers, backing Celtic’s swoop for a fleet-footed Spanish starlet.
“(Celtic) have got a great track record of developing young players from European clubs,” said Thompson, a four-time Scottish Premiership champion in green and white.
“The likes of Van Dijk, (Victor) Wanyama, Edouard, Dembele, they’ve got a track record of doing that and it works for them.
“They have a history of bringing these players in, developing them and then selling them on for a lot of money, so I’d say (signing Riquelme) is worth a go.”
Riquelme is yet to establish himself as a key part of Diego Simeone’s first-team plans at the Wanda Metropolitano but that does not mean his departure would not be seen as a major blow at Atletico.
The teenager attacker is one of Spain’s most exciting talents and, as a dazzling performance in a recent UEFA Youth League thrashing of Rangers showed, there is a reason why Riquelme has been likened to former Brazil (and Celtic) playmaker Juninho.
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