Massive Celtic summer transfer mistake comes to light

Celtic appear to have made a massive mistake in the summer transfer window by going after the cheaper option once again.

One of the biggest complaints about Celtic’s transfer policy in recent years is about how the club consistently end up going after cheap options and hoping that they turn out to be great players. And while that did work out in the past, their record has been horrendous over the past several seasons.

Just think of all the players who have come in for transfer fees between £1-3 million and gone on to do absolutely nothing. A few years later, the club have been forced to move them on for a loss. What is more frustrating is the fact that better players were available for a slightly higher asking price.

It is just not a great way of doing business. We are all aware of the John McGinn disaster. And it might be time to add the name of Ivan Toney to that list as well.

The Hoops were linked with the striker through the course of the summer and it always looked like the player himself was interested in moving to Parkhead as well. But Peterborough Director of Football, Barry Fry’s comments suggest that it was the Celtic board who decided against making a move.

As reported by The Scottish Sun, he said:

"“I said to Lenny and Nicky Hammond, when I met him, that Ivan wasn’t only a goalscorer, he was also the best defender we had. Honestly, at opposition corners and set-pieces the boy was brilliant with clearing headers.“What do I think he’s worth for them now? They might get £30-50m for him if he carries on the way he is.“Ivan wanted to go to Celtic because of the relationship he had with Gavin Strachan through working with him at Peterborough last season. And let’s be fair, Celtic are also one of the biggest clubs in the world with their support.“At the time, they were prepared to give him £25,000 a week — more than what the others were prepared to. That said, he’s got a better deal at Brentford. Brentford really wanted him and did their homework. But Ivan would have walked to Celtic.”"

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At the end of the day, the Hoops end up going for Albian Ajeti for a reported transfer fee of around £5 million. The Swiss striker did make a great start to life at Parkhead but has since faded away and it does not look like he is someone who is capable of leading the line on his own.

On the other hand, Ivan Toney ended up moving to Brentford for a fee of around £6.5 million. And he has been absolutely on fire since then. In 16 Championship appearances, he has scored 14 goals and provided 2 assists. And if he continues to perform at this level, it will not be long before a Premier League side come calling.

Again, the price difference was not too much between the two strikers. And Toney was clearly the man in form having scored 24 goals in League One last season, while Ajeti had failed to open his account for West Ham United. Yet Celtic ended up going for the ‘cheaper’ option in a decision they might be regretting already.