"[I]Celtic target Israeli midfield star Nir Biton as the man to boost their midfield 26 Aug 2013 07:29 PARKHEAD manager Neil Lennon could swoop for the 21-year-old as his move for Finnish attacker Teemu Pukki goes on hold until after the Champions League knock-out round. Record Sport can reveal the international midfielder has emerged as a potential signing target for Parkhead manager Neil Lennon. Biton, who attracted serious interest from Manchester City 12 months ago, wants to move away from his homeland and take the next step in his career. The 21-year-old is into the last year of his contract at Ashdod, who play in the Israeli Premier League, and could be available for as little as £700,000 with his club’s bargaining position weakening. Lennon is on the lookout for strikers but a holding midfield man to cover the loss of Victor Wanyama is also on the agenda. Biton had a week’s trial under the watch of previous City boss Roberto Mancini and played two matches on a pre-season tour of Austria but no deal was done. Meanwhile, Celtic are close to doing a deal for Teemu Pukki but must meet conditions placed on the £3million transfer fee by his club, Schalke, if they want the 23-year-old Finnish attacker. Pukki is due to jet out to Greece today for Schalke’s Champions League decider against PAOK Salonika tomorrow. The 23-year-old has attracted interest from other clubs but Celtic are in pole position. Schalke have already booted out one offer from the Hoops but agent Tapio Raatikainen and German-based partner Gerrit Gertung firmly believe a deal can be completed. Gertung said: “There are concrete pre-arranged conditions that have to be met. Then, to my knowledge, Pukki can leave[/I]." http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/celtic-boss-neil-lennon-closing-2223641
Trevor , which tie is more important Sevco Ramsden cup tonight or Celtic's champions league match tomorrow night ??? Both clubs are desperate to do well in the tournament that means so much to them , surprised to read the top tiers are closed in their huge match against Berwick Rangers , why is that ???
Can we afford to sign anyone? I had a look at our finances last night. In last years accounts up to june 2012 we lost £7m and turnover was down to £30m. With the total debt at £15m. Now this doesn't include champions league money and the sale of ki. Our interim accounts in December showed a profit of £15m with turnover increased to £50m, but that is mainly down to the champions league. The debt was also reduced to £10m. So we can see that without the champions league money we aren't a profit making business unless we manage to make sales like wanyama all the time. I can now see where the board is coming from, as it would be foolish to bank on making the champions league every year, and we need to structure the club accordingly.
He blew hot for a few months then died on his arse. Failed to live up to the potential he showed sadly otherwise I may have said yes, if you've not seen him play he reminded me a bit of Billy Bremner.
