Celtic transfer fail revealed as striker rejected near £40k per week deal for contract worth less than half

A former Premier League striker has revealed why he opted against a move to Celtic under Ange Postecoglou.

Troy Deeney is claimed to have had a lucrative contract offer on the table from the current Premiership champions prior to an emotional move to Birmingham City, who he supported. The striker had a lengthy association with Watford, who he spent 11 years with after joining them in 2010.

Once that stint came to an end, he was left with choices over where to go next. The idea of playing for Celtic did appeal to him but family reasons put him off the idea of going north for the Postecoglou era. And in the end, claims he took a wage offer less than half of what the Hoops had put up.

Deeney told Undr the Cosh: “Do you know what? If I’m being honest, I had two offers to go abroad, three offers to go abroad that were quite lucrative. I had an offer to go to Middlesbrough with Neil Warnock, and then Celtic came in for me as well. And I was like, that’s mint, but it’s miles away.

“Again, now I’m getting to the point of 34, being around the kids. Oldest boy, he finishes this year, so he’s at that point where he needs me, becoming a man now. The girls need me. Like, no, I’m not moving.

“So, put it into perspective, those teams I’ve just mentioned offered me nearly £40K a week to go there. Ended up signing up Blues for 12 grand a week. But I was home.”