Luis Palma Celtic transfer twist as former Rangers striker lands deal

The summer transfer window is done and dusted but there is still plenty of talk surrounding Celtic and Rangers, particularly around contracts and the futures of players.

The two Glasgow giants will return to Scottish Premiership action next week as the Scotland national team prepare to take centre during the international break.

Elsewhere, a former Rangers striker has sealed his next move after leaving Ibrox, while details have emerged of how Luis Palma’s move to Parkhead was pushed through by his old club’s sacrifice. Here are the latest Celtic and Rangers transfer news headlines on Friday, September 8:

Former Rangers striker lands Anderlecht deal

Ex-Rangers academy starlet Robbie Ure has found his next club after winning a move to Belgian giants Anderlecht on a one-year contract.

The 19-year-old striker - who became a free agent after turning down a new deal at Ibrox earlier this summer - impressed the Jupiler Pro League side on trial and will join up with their Neerpede (development) squad.

Anderlecht’s B-team compete in the second tier of Belgian football and Ure will hope to make an instant impact with his new club after scoring an impressive 17 goals in 33 Lowland League games last season.

A number of clubs in Scotland were also interested in him but the hefty compensation fee owed to Rangers made pushing a deal over the line difficult.

Ure had briefly been training with Scottish Championship side Queen’s Park as the Spiders looked to strengthen their attacking options just weeks after his proposed move to Dutch outfit AZ Alkmaar collapsed.

Luis Palma Celtic transfer twist involving boyhood club revealed

New Celtic signing Luis Palma was on the books of boyhood team Vida when he was pursaded to choose a move to Greece over Portuguese side Braga in early 2022.

The Honduras international winger penned a five-year-deal with the Scottish champions this summer after leaving Greek side Aris Thessaloniki. And Vida club president Luis Cruz admits he’s delighted to see Palma’s progress after claiming they gave up on some of their transfer sell-on fee when through him swerving a move to Portugal.

Speaking to local outlet LaPresna, he said: “At the beginning of last year we had everything closed with Braga. That’s where Pablo talked to me about it, he told me that we should take him to Greece, here we will have a chance and because the competition in Portugal is not easy, I always trusted Luis.

“Furthermore, I told Pablo that they had the last word and I am going to support him in the best way, perhaps Greece was not the best decision, but now Luis is at Celtic and we hope to enjoy those spectacular goals he scores.

“The Aris people put pressure on us and we as a club were the ones who were hurt, but we made the best decision to support Luis with his career. We know that his departure from Aris was the best thing that could have happened to him, now it is his turn to prove and earn a place in Celtic’s starting team and we know that the club’s path is super difficult, but Luis has a lot of quality.

“In the end, until the last day, the 31st (August) was when they sent the pass. We don’t have specific data out there, but it is a large amount. We talk there every day, we have a beautiful friendship and we are there for whatever he needs.”