- EXCLUSIVE from Graeme Bailey
Scottish Premiership champions Celtic have failed with an opening bid of £4 million plus add-ons for Norwich City striker Adam Idah with the Republic of Ireland international valued at around twice that fee.
Adam Idah joined Celtic on loan during the January transfer window and, immediately making a positive impression, proved to be a massive success in the green and white Hoops.
The speedy centre-forward netted nine goals in 19 games. It was the timing and the importance of many of those strikes, however, which truly secured Idah fans’ favourite status in Glasgow.
Without his stoppage time strikes against Hibernian and Motherwell in the league – plus against Rangers in the Scottish Cup final – a double-winning campaign could have become a rare trophyless one for Brendan Rodgers’ side.
Celtic are now hoping that a deal can be agreed to bring Idah back to Scotland on a full-time basis.
Norwich City reject opening Celtic bid for Adam Idah
HITC reported in June that Norwich were hoping to bring in around £8 million. That is twice as much as Celtic’s initial offer, understood to be worth £4 million albeit with add-ons.
The good news for Rodgers, however, is that Norwich do appear open to a sale at the right price.
The Canaries’ sporting director, Ben Knapper, admitted recently that exits would be considered by a club who have sold the likes of Max Aarons, Andrew Omobamidele, Emi Buendia, Ben Godfrey and Jamal Lewis for sizeable fees in previous transfer windows.
“There’s always pressure on us here (to sell) because that’s our model,” Knapper explains to the Pink Un. “Whether we have to (sell) or we don’t, we want to and that’s what we define as success as well.
“Of course, we always want to build a team that can win games and get promotion. That’s always going to be the ambition. But as well as doing that, in order to be sustainable we have to try (and raise funds via selling players).
“So we put pressure on ourselves to do that. Every summer is no different in that respect.”
Norwich’s new head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup, however, is keen to take a closer look at Idah in pre-season. The man replacing David Wagner in the Carrow Road dugout believes it would be ‘stupid’ to make any decision on the Cork-born frontman so early in his reign.
Yet, if Celtic are willing to stump up closer to the £8 million fee Norwich want, that decision may be taken out of Thorup’s hands.
Brendan Rodgers a huge fan of the Hampden hero
“The board know how I feel on Adam. That was the reason for bringing him in,” Rodgers told The Independent after Idah pounced on Jack Butland’s error to claim a dramatic victory over neighbours Rangers at Hampden Park. “He’s been a real catalyst for us, especially over the last few months.
“He has all the attributes. He’s fast, dynamic, strong. And I felt, with better positioning, he’d get goals. What he’s done since coming in is show that he’s a goalscorer. He gets different types of goals.
“He has great movement in the box and he deals with pressure moments. (In the cup fina) he was like a real number nine sniffing in and around the box.
“He’s been absolutely immense for us and he’s clearly someone I’d like to do something with. I’ve seen development in him and that’s what the game’s about – players improving. I just know with Adam that he’s got such a high ceiling.”
The post Exclusive: Celtic may have to double bid for 'immense' Rodgers fave, £4m offer falls well short appeared first on HITC.
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