Izaguirre can help Celtic sign longtime transfer target

Emilio Izaguirre could help his old club Celtic sign a winger keen to make a move to Europe.

One potential winger signing was apparently subject to a £3 million bid from Celtic last year but the deal didn’t progress.

Alberth Elis, nicknamed La Panterita (the little panther) is a 24-year old winger and a Honduran National teammate of Izaguirre. Elis plays his club football for Houston Dynamo in US Major League Soccer (MLS).

His contract with Houston runs out this year and while they have offered him a new contract and are keen to keep him, Elis has itchy feet and wants to play in Europe. Last year’s bid was turned down by MLS who own all the clubs and make transfer decisions for them. According to the Daily Record:

"“This is a real opportunity and I think I will make the decision that I will leave Houston and give Europe a go.”“Izaguirre confirmed the Parkhead club were looking at the player but a deal could not be reached with the American league.”"

Apparently Elis was disappointed that the move broke down which will fuel his determination to get a move away. It’s reported he wasn’t allowed to have discussions with Celtic at the time.

He’s a 1-in-3 game goal scorer with 31 goals for Houston Dynamos in his 92 games for them. Elis also has 10 goals for Honduras in his 42 national side matches.  That’s not bad at all for a wide player. He’s also got a “have a look at this” acrobatic shot from the Dynamos official club twitter, it shows an exciting potential talent.

We’d love to see a player score like that at Parkhead for sure.

Apparently Stoke City and Fenerbache are amongst interested clubs, but you’d hope he and Izzy have continued their chats and Elis has been told by his fellow Honduran what an exciting club Celtic would be for him. He looks like a decent buy at around £2-3 million and worth following up by manager Neil Lennon and his team.