Mikael Lustig wants Celtic stay but no deal forthcoming
Swedish international Mikael Lustig has called on Celtic to offer him a new deal with his current contract set to expire this summer.
Lustig signed a pre-contract agreement with Celtic in November 2011 after playing at Rosenborg for four years making his debut on the 3rd March in the 1-1 draw with Aberdeen. He has gone on to win seven league titles, three Scottish Cups and four League Cups during his time with the Glasgow side and most recently was representing Sweden in the 2018 World Cup Finals – where the side was knocked out in the quarter-finals 2-0 by England.
Speaking to Swedish newspaper, Expressen, Lustig said: “There’s nothing really to say there because it’s nothing. I have a contract with Celtic and hope to extend here. The ball lies with them. If they want me to continue, I will say here.”
The 32-year-old has been linked with a move back to Sweden in the summer with AIK Stockholm touted as his destination, but the defender who has been capped 73 times for his national team has intimated that he would consider other options if he leaves Celtic.
He added: “No if that happens, we’ll see [a move back to AIK]. Nothing is clear that we should move home in that case, we might have another option to go abroad. But I hope to stay at Celtic. If I don’t, I’m sure I will find something that I will enjoy. The important thing is that it should be good for the family and also for football.”
While Lustig is hoping that the Celtic hierarchy offer him a new deal, manager Brendan Rodgers has already been looking at successors to the full-back, but their pursuit of Olympiakos right-back Omar Elabdellaoui and Atalanta’s Timothy Castagne were cut short after being priced out of a move for the pair.
With no deal on the table – given the Swede’s poor performances over the past year – it looks like Lustig will be leaving Celtic after seven years and should be thanked for his service to the club.
Despite his departure from the club looming, Lustig claimed that Celtic still feel ‘very safe’ at the top of the table and remain top dogs in Scottish football – despite the 1-0 defeat to Rangers at Ibrox last month.
He said: “Rangers have made many signings and spent a lot of money. If you look back, the two teams have not really been on the same level recently. They are now second in the league and people have started to talk about them.
“But we still feel like No.1 and we feel very safe. We are still leading the league race and we hope to take another title.”
Wantaway defender Dedryck Boyata must be shown the door. dark. Next
Meanwhile, Celtic are looking to finalise moves for US youngsters
and
this week – with the latter rejecting a deal from Rangers and link up with fellow countryman
– who is on loan from PSG until the end of the season.
Do you think Mikael Lustig should be handed a new deal? Who should Celtic sign as his successor if or when he leaves Celtic? And what do you think of Celtic’s transfer dealings in this window so far?