Celtic sent brutal transfer warning after previous 'fiasco' as Rangers star sends injury comeback message

Former Hibs and Dundee United forward Tam McManus has blasted Celtic’s transfer approach for Norwich City forward Adam Idah and claims that the club’s methods draw parallels to their failure to land John McGinn back in 2018.

The Hoops recently had an offer in the region of £4m to £5m rejected for the Republic of Ireland international, who impressed on loan last term, scoring nine goals in 19 appearances last term, including a dramatic winner against Rangers in the Scottish Cup final.

McManus claims that Celtic will need to splash the cash to land Idah to avoid losing him to a competitor as they did with McGinn five years ago, who is now worth considerably more than the £2m figure Aston Villa paid Hibs for him.

He said: “Why do Celtic continue to lowball teams for players? Have they learned nothing from the John McGinn fiasco? Someone will offer £6 million and get him. Penny pinching again.”

Celtic were one of the frontrunners to land the 69-time international after a string of impressive performances in the capital between 2015 and 2018. But they failed to meet the club’s valuation for a player. When Steve Bruce’s Aston Villa beat the Parkhead club to their top target, the incident left then-chief executive Peter Lawwell facing significant criticism.

The situation with Adam Idah isn’t quite the same with the player contracted to Norwich for the foreseeable. Similarly BBC Sport understands that new manager Johannes Hoff Thorup sees him as part of the club’s long-term plans which was not a view that was shared by his predecessor David Wagner, who allowed the loan move to take place.

Celtic’s reluctance to move quicker for Idah has come as a source of great frustration to some supporters on X. One user tweeted: “Biggest financial bank balance in our history and we are starting off a bid at £4m plus for a player that is valued much higher.

“If you want Adam Idah go and pay the money. Embarrassment.”

However, others argued that it is important to be frugal in the market and to use the power of negotiation.

One user commented: “No club goes in with their highest offer as their first bid.”

Rangers star offers fans huge injury boost

Rangers forward Danilo is edging closer to a return to competitive action after suffering a season-ending injury in December.

The former Brazil U23 international admits time have been difficult during his spell on the sidelines but claims that the birth of his child has been the “daylight through the darkness.’

Speaking to Rangers TV, he said: “I always try to look on the positive things and when I had my knee (injury), my daughter was almost born and I was like ‘wow’. I didn’t want to be in that situation when she came into the world. I was working really hard for that so when she was born I was really good to take care of her and walk everywhere with her and she was giving me so much strength to get through those hard moments. She’s like the daylight of the darkness.”

He also explained that his teammates played a crucial role in supporting him through his injury. 

He added: “The boys in the dressing room are part of the family and in those moments when my head was down a little bit and couldn’t see any progression, even though I had to be patient, the boys were like ‘Hey Danny, you are always a positive guy and always smiling’. So they told me to smile and bring happiness to them so that was really a sweet message the boys gave to me when I wasn’t having a good day or wasn’t in a good place. And now I’m back on the field they’re saying ‘welcome back’. They are really sweet and part of the family

“It’s been great to be back. The past few months have been a rollercoaster for me but now being back with the team all the hard work in the gym and outside has been paying off. It’s still going but it’s amazing just being with the boys. It was crazy. If I look backwards, every time there are things I wish I could do but I couldn’t at that moment.

“It was hard but those moments make me more stronger. It’s difficult not being able to do what I was used to every day and every weekend so it was difficult when I wasn’t with the boys but everyone was really relaxed with me and patient and if things I didn’t do well they gave me good confidence. It’s been great to be back.

“I remember my first run, my first contact with the ball. I was like a kid just starting to play football. I was in my happy place back on the field. There’s still a lot to work on and I’m not 100 per cent there but I’m working hard to achieve that.”

Danilo adds that getting a full pre-season with his teammates has helped him to form tighter bonds as he settles in following last summer’s move from the Netherlands.

"Last year I didn’t have the opportunity to have a full pre-season with the boys - I arrived a little bit later - so it’s good to start with them and click and get the connections.

“It’s been a really long journey for me and right now the most important thing is to take care of my knee and be 100 percent ready for the start of the competitive games but it’s still good to build up self confidence in the friendly games.” He added.

The Light Blues star was the big summer signing 12 months ago when he arrived for £6m and upon his return has promised that he will be a father figure to new recruit Jefte, who also hails from Sao Paulo Brazil.

“The relationship with Jefte has been really good. He’s from a different side of Sao Paulo so it’s funny because we speak a little bit differently but we both understand each other. I have to help him quite a lot. That’s something I think I have to be responsible for - to make him feel as comfortable as possible and be part of this really nice group. He will get used to the language but he’s a really nice boy and I think he will contribute a lot.”

Clement and his squad fly to the Netherlands on Sunday for a pre-season training camp and will take on Danilo’s former club Ajax in a friendly game.