Celtic suffer more transfer dismay as 'target' in key area set to make future decision
The 24-year-old Austrian will undergo a medical in the Netherlands today
Celtic look set to encounter more disappointment in their pursuit of a new goalkeeper to challenge Viljami Sinisalo after one of their summer targets agreed a deal with an Eredivisie club.
The Hoops were credited with an interest in Wolfsberger AC shot-stopper Nikolas Polster back in May along with German second-tier side Union Berlin, but it now appears the Austrian is on his way to the Netherlands.
The 24-year-old is poised to sign for NEC Nijmegen and will undergo a medical this today after playing his final game for Wolfsberger against Danny Rohl’s RB Salzburg over the weekend.
Asked post-match by local media if his performance would have alerted potential suitors, Polster replied: “I don’t believe that one game decides whether I make a transfer or not. I showed what I’m capable of today. We’ll see what happens next in the coming days.”
The fresh development comes just a few days after Wolfsberger boss Thomas Sillberger suggested he was hopeful Polster would remain at the club for the remainder of the transfer window as he enters the final year of his contract.
“Nik is absolutely ready for the team in my opinion,” he admitted. “He’s an outstanding goalkeeper, but I can assure you of one thing: we’ll played with eleven players next Saturday in Lustenau, and one of them will be wearing goalkeeper gloves. At the end of the day, I don’t want to overemphasize this. The transfer might happen, but we will field a goalkeeper in Lustenau on Saturday.”
Sinisalo is currently Celtic’s first-choice keeper, with only Ross Doohan as back-up following the decision of veteran Kasper Schmeichel to hang up the gloves last season.
Iheanacho scores on Bursaspor debut
Meanwhile, Kelechi Iheanacho enjoyed a dream start to life in Turkey on Sunday after scoring for new club Bursaspor as they kicked off their new Super Lig campaign with a 2-0 win over Bodrum.
The Scottish champions failed in their quest to re-sign the Nigeria international after playing an integral role in the last season’s league and Scottish Cup double.
Speaking after the game, Iheanacho said: “The first matches are usually difficult, But as a team, we overcame the difficult and I’m happy that we won. I’m very happy with my personal performance, as I scored a goal and provided an assist. Before coming to Bursa and Turkiye, I wasn’t expecting a place like this; Brusa and Turkiye are truly amazing.
“Bursaspor fans gave me a wonderful welcome from the very first day, and after the goal, I wanted to go to them and reciprocate that. I hope to be very successful here and lift trophies.”