EDOUARD AND THE £60m BIDDING WAR

ODSONNE EDOUARD is heading for a multi-million pound bidding war.

That’s the view of former Celtic striker Harald Brattbakk who reckons there will be feverish activity surrounding the Hoops hitman over the next month or so.

Neil Lennon has already stated interested clubs will face a battle to prise the Frenchman away from the champions, as CQN reported.

The 22-year-old forward stepped into the spotlight again at the weekend when he fired in a hat-trick as the team kicked off the 10-in-a-row campaign with a 5-1 victory over Hamilton Accies at Parkhead.

It got the club talisman, who still has two years to run on his contract, off to a perfect start after claiming 28 strikes before football went into cold storage in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

TREBLE YELL… Odsonne Edouard nets the first of his hat-trick against Hamilton Accies.

Brattbakk, who teamed up with Henrik Larsson to give Wim Jansen’s side a crucial championship in 1998, insists his old club will be under extreme pressure to reject colossal bids for Edouard – especially if the money on offer reaches a whopping £60million.

The Norwegian, now 49, reckons the Hoops hierarchy may be compelled to sell their hottest property as English teams queue up to strengthen their attacking options before their new season begins on September 12 with the transfer window remaining open until October 5.

There have already been reports of ex-boss Brendan Rodgers preparing a £40million proposal for the player to take the fans’ favourite to Leicester City.

Brattbakk, speaking to the Daily Mail, said: “I think it would be really tough to say no to a bid of that amount. It’s so much money.

“Financially, Celtic is still doing well. But any club would appreciate £40million right now. Also, if you sell him for that kind of money, you could buy one or two new players for maybe £10million and you’d still be left with £30million.

“This is always the discussion that you have. The club will always think about 10-in-a-row, but also about how best to run it.

“If you ask the supporters, of course, they’d all give Édouard a better contract to stay on. But it’s not that easy. The board of directors have to think about both things which makes it difficult.”

HOOP HOOP HOORAY…Harald Brattbakk celebrates one of his Celtic goals.

Scotland’s title kings will be braced for envious eyes being cast in the direction of the flamboyant ex-Under 21 international who cost a club record £9million from Paris Saint-Germain in June 2018.

Jose Mourinho’s Spurs and Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton have also been linked with Edouard who has previously started he is perfectly happy in Glasgow.

Brattbakk added: “He won’t be sold this week. And if he plays well next week and scores a couple of more goals, there will definitely be more interest in him.

“The English league doesn’t start until September 12. If Edouard plays well in the next four or five games and adds to his number of goals, the bids could even rise to £55million or £60million.

“It’s a good situation for Celtic at the moment. The SPFL has started, the EPL hasn’t and there are plenty of games for him to show himself to other clubs.

“If Leicester bid £40million, maybe another club will come in with more.”

Edouard will be back in action on Sunday when the Hoops take on Kilmarnock at Rugby Park.