Every summer, there seems to be a high-profile Celtic departure. Last time, it was Matt O'Riley who headed to Brighton & Hove Albion. A year before that, Jota joined Al-Ittihad. Now it is Nicolas Kuhn heading towards the Parkhead exit door. Despite being linked with Newcastle United and RB Leipzig, he is set to join Italian Serie A side Como FC in a €19 million deal. An official announcement has not been made yet but that is only a matter of time.
The exit was somewhat expected. The rapidity at which it has happened was not though. Just think about how long previous transfer sagas have lasted when it comes to Celtic. Kieran Tierney to Arsenal, Odsonne Edouard to Crystal Palace, Kristoffer Ajer to Brentford, even O'Riley to Brighton, the list goes on.
And yet, this time around, they seemed happy to accept a transfer bid in early July despite multiple clubs being interested in Kuhn. The €19 million figure appears to be on the low side who was scoring goals and RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich in the Champions League last season.
So, why did Celtic bring an end to this transfer situation so quickly? Well, the events leading up to the move might explain it.
Celtic fans won't like Nicolas Kuhn's actions leading up to exit
As reported by CeltsAreHere, Kuhn had been eyeing a move away from Celtic since January. The German winger reportedly pushed for a transfer midway through the 24/25 season, but the Hoops resisted back then.
The fact that Kuhn was pushing for an exit merely a year after joining Celtic might not go down well with a large section of the support. But it is what it is.
The reality of the situation is that Celtic often end up becoming a stepping stone for players in modern football. The Hoops cannot compete with the top teams in Europe financially, and until that changes, this is going to remain the case.