Charlton owner gives Alfie Doughty to Celtic transfer update

Charlton Athletic owner has given an update on Alfie Doughty’s future at the club as the transfer rumours continue to link him to Celtic.

It is no secret that Celtic are in search of a new left-back after letting Jonny Hayes walk out for free and being almost forced to loan out Boli Bolingoli after his disastrous trip to Spain that landed the club in a lot of trouble. That has left the Hoops with only Greg Taylor in the left side of defence, a situation that is far from ideal as the Hoops look to secure a historic 10th straight Scottish league title.

One man who appears to be very high on Celtic’s wishlist is Alfie Doughty. The youngster is a highly-rated prospect capable of playing both at left-back and left-midfield. As a result, he would be perfect at left-wingback in Neil Lennon’s 3-5-2 formation and it is hard not to see why the Hoops want his services.

Having been relegated from the Championship just last season, Charlton Athletic have shown some great resolve by resisting two bids from the Scottish champions. And their owner’s recent comments regarding the future of Doughty could be a blow to Celtic’s chances of landing the youngster.

Speaking with South London Press, Thomas Sandgaard said:

"“I spoke very early on with Lee Bowyer [manager] and Steve Gallen [director of football] about that situation.“Someone with that kind of talent we want to keep here. We don’t want to keep decimating the team just to pay a few more bills.“I think you’ll start seeing the difference to what you saw in the spring [when East Street Investments ran the club].“Under the old ownership that would have been an immediate sale. We see Alfie as someone we can build on. He’s still got a lot of things he can improve on over the next season or two to become a really, really high quality player and help take us further.”"

Now, there are two ways to take these comments. One could be that Charlton Athletic have no interest in letting go of Doughty and Celtic should start looking elsewhere. The other could be that with just days left in the transfer window, he could be looking to get as much money he can out of the Hoops in exchange for Doughty.

Celtic having lost out on Ryan Sessegnon though, do not be surprised if a third bid for the League One star is launched soon. And if that happens, it will become clear how much the new owner really values his player.