A fresh Haissem Hassan update has emerged from Spain, with Celtic still hoping to wrap up a deal for the winger this summer. The Hoops have been pursuing the Egypt international over recent weeks, but Real Oviedo have been playing hardball.
Oviedo were relegated from the top flight last season, but they know Hassan is a hot property after his impressive performances at the World Cup, and they want to maximise their profit, which will be slashed to just 60% due to a sell-on clause.
Oviedo could do with a sale, but at the right price
According to a new report from La Nueva España, Oviedo could do with the sale to fund signing this summer, and not because they lack money, but because they must need La Liga's salary cap, which is a little tighter now that they are in LaLiga 2.
The other factor is that Hassan's former club Villarreal have a 40% sell-on in the player's deal, meaning Oviedo will only get just over half of whatever the fee is.
The report claims there is a big offer from Saudi Arabia for Hassan, but the player is said to prefer a European stay, and Celtic can offer that, even if wages are likely to be less than what the Saudi club are offering.
But Celtic are not currently meeting Oviedo's asking price, which is said to be below Hassan's £10.2million asking price, closer to the £6.5million mark.
There is little change as far as Celtic are concerned in that they are not going to get their hands on the winger unless they increase their bid. But there is now a little more context for fans as the talks continue.
The bottom line is that Oviedo could do with selling, particularly as they are in talks over signings of their own, and they need to meet that salary cap, which will prevent them from registering new players until they are adequately under the threshold. But they won't be doing a cut-price deal for Hassan, and it seems that sell-on clause has a lot to do with it. Talks are likely to rumble on.
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