Sky have reported that Celtic have accepted a £5m bid from QPR for Gary Hooper. Gary is in the final year of his contract and has declined to sign a new deal which has been no offer for almost a year now.
It will surprise some, perhaps including the player, that an English Premier League club have not made a move, but QPR have the cash to compete with most in the top flight, so the financial rewards for the player will be comparable.
For Celtic the proposition is simple, if the player is not going to extend his stay beyond this season, and an offer matching valuation is received, it is better they know where they stand as early in the transfer window as possible. We’ll know soon enough if the player wants to move. As we said about Victor, it’s always hard to lose a good one, but I’ve yet to meet someone who would walk away from a deal north of £50k per week, so fair play to Gary, whatever he decides.
Neil Lennon had never hid his admiration for the player but the Celtic strategy is clear enough. If Gary decides to move it’s all about finding the right replacement, they days of slavishly watching players run down their contracts are over.
Have you done your thing for 1254125 yet? The supporters group working with Celtic Charity proposed we get as many as possible signed up to running a 10k, hoping each person can raise £125. We’ve teamed up with The Great Scottish Run on Sunday 6 October and extended the scope a bit, to include those who don’t quite have the legs for 10k.
On Saturday 5 October, The Great Scottish Run also organise supporting events you can enter and raise your £125:
100m Toddler Dask (0-5 yrs)
1.5k Mini Run (5-8 yrs)
2.5k Junior Run (9-15 yrs)
Family Mile (Adults and children from 3 yrs)
If you are particularly fit, you can enter the Half Marathon on the Sunday. It is going to be a great family weekend. If you know a kid who is keen to participate and get involved in 1254125, let them know.
If the legs won’t support you for 10k, you can gingerly make your way along the Family Mile.
To sign up you need to register with The Great Scottish Run first. Register here if you are participating in the 10k or Half Marathon, and here if you are participating in the Saturday events, then register here with Celtic Charity (scroll down the page until you see Great Scottish Run).
Just over 10 weeks to go, get your application in and get every Celtic fan you know with a pair of trainers to sign up. I’m doing the 10k, so will be out running tonight…….
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roy croppie
20:14 on 24 July, 2013
Interesting, thanks ..!! … Sally will demand names …..lhahaha
!!bada bing!!
20:45 on 24 July, 2013
Balde actually looks good….
sweden off the post …still a goal down …last 20 mins..
Len Brennan
Thanks for signing rumours update. Can you or anyone else tell me what is/has happened with Javier Saviola. Has he signed for anyone yet? I thought signing him was a real possibility.
SRS
Read my post please
My beef is no adequate replacement ….also I fail to see why we sell VW and Hooper immediately to teams who will be unaffected by them having appeared in the CL qualifiers
Ellbhoy
How much money will Lenny get ….lucky if he’ll get another £3m …
We have no debt …punted a rake of squad players ….
67heaven
Based on what ?
67Heaven … I am Neil Lennon..!!.. Ibrox belongs to the creditors
20:55 on
24 July, 2013
I thought that too, I have one of his countrymen at work and he expects him to suit our footie.
foxy_1888- yeah forward planning and squad management is niave and will never catch on.Hooper had the offer 9 months ago,he was never going to sign it.
The Hooper (and Wanyama) transfers need to always be considered both within a footballing AND business context. In some cases (Wanyama) the business context is so over-whelming that there was only ever going to be one outcome.
With Hooper its perhaps a little more complex, but the critical numbers in all current transfer dealing are thus:
Last year we made a loss of £7m+ (pre-tax)
Turnover was a shade over £51m
So when we are offered roughly 25% of turnover (Wanyama) in one shot – it was NEVER not going to get done.
With Hooper we are being offered about 10% of last years revenue.
At that level, again, it seems like the deal has only one outcome.
We ARE a business, and we need long-term sustainable growth. Losing Vic and Hooper will have ZERO effect on our domestic results (in as far as that we will win the League and the other two we SHOULD win). So it’s not worth wasting our time ruing the loss of Hoopers goals, becuase we will find them from somewhere else.
In Europe, is where we should be asking the questions. Both players played their part last season, but the Barca goal perhaps painted Wanyama’s appearances a shade above what they were. Do we have replacements? Wanyama – yes. Hooper? – Maybe.
Will we go out and spend £5m on a new striker? No.
The Celtic strategy (which is working perfectly), is to buy young and hungry and get our pound of flesh. I can’t see us (and wouldn’t want us) to deviate from that. If Kevin Doyle is seen anywhere near CP, that would be a major strategy switch.
The best ever from Billy no well…… The minibus is coming
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L5-x9sQpb4
djmccormack
Who do we have that can replace VW…
Went with wife and grandson last summer to see Sweden v France women in the Olympics at Hampden. Really good game. Swedes played well but were beaten 3-1 by a really tall and athletic French team.
Wee one insisted on me buying him a Union flag which I did through clenched teeth after he resisted my attempts to persuade him to go for a saltire. He wanted the British Olympic flag. Ho hum. (I’ ve hidden it under his bed, hoping he’ll forget about it).
Bada Bing, how do you know that Hooper wasn’t going to sign then? Were you part of the negotiations? If not then you are guessing.
Vermin are point scoring I see.
John Oneil
Hooper had adequate opportunity to sign on …he avoided the question every time he was asked
He had no intention of signing on ….and no I wasn’t part of the negotiations ..
Tosser says weeFrathetim. Bellend says IPaddy mc Court. These in my opinion are both the best and most accurate description of the singing dick character. They are also apt for all the other sides of the personality that live inside that head, or moonbeam central to you and me.
PL couldn’t win. The moaners would have moaned if we sold him then.
Evening all,
I don’t really care where Hoops ends up, if/when he goes he will go with my best wishes and thanks.
My real concern is Celtic’s future, how can we possibly grow if we don’t retain our best players?, I understand that the league we play in presents us with huge problems but we appear to be almost submissive when it comes to holding onto our best players.
Have a look at how Brendan Rodgers, Davie Moyes and Andre Villas-Boas react when big offers come in for their best players, they fight (or appear to fight) for their club and fans, compare and contrast this with Lenny.
Whilst I accept the lure of the premiership must be huge (or even the championship in comparison with Scotland) for a player, but do we need our manager telling the listening world that going to Southampton from Celtic is a fantastic opportunity for the player?.
My biggest fear is that our custodians and manager have accepted that this is our lot, fingers and toes crossed that we make the group stages of the champions league but there’s no way we will take the chance of investing in current or new staff to make this more of a reality.
I am not stupid (those who know me may provide quite a convincing argument to the contrary), so I do not need reminded on a daily basis as to the reason’s why we can’t try or aspire to be better than we are.
I love my club, always will regardless of who leaves but I need to know that those who are looking after the club are doing what’s best for it. If remaining in Scotland is holding us back then show me what the plan is to resolve this, give us some hope that my club is not going to exist to be a feeder club for bigger nations. The plan may not work and we may remain here but for ghod sake give us some hope, talk to us let us unite and fight for a better future for our club.
If the board showed any ambition to better our current position there would be many willing to help free of charge. The skill’s that this blog has is truly breathtaking sometimes, the depth of knowledge is unbelievable. If our club showed real ambition and provided some sort of blueprint of how we can grow or move then the guy’s on here would have the details sorted within hours!.
It really is soul destroying to see big players walk out the door to teams of much lesser stature, it is doubly destroying to hear my manager meekly accepting it as if there is no alternative.
HailHail
djmccormack
Dont disagree, however looking at it from purely a business perspective, both Wanyama and Hooper, our two best players,could have been retained until we negotiate CL qualifiers then sold on for very little, if any, loss to what was achieved.
Its not the strategy, the ethos or the principles, its purely the timing that appears to weaken us unnecessarily.
BMCUW
He really got on my proverbials wi the crap. I am really glad he has blocked me. The guy is not worthy of this site, and the sooner he realises that, the better we will all be. AND I guarantee, he has never set foot in Celtic Park in his lifetime. Ipox? Would not bet against it. He comes across like the “we arra peepip” type of scum that we endured for so many years. He is not fit to lace Kojo’s designer shoes.
Weefra HH
….pfayr
21:03 on 24 July, 2013
Me
Prestonpans Bhoy ..I have to say that was one of the Lisbon highlights !
( must dash podium chasing training classes about to start :))
67heaven
Clearly
How much have you seen of him ??
….PFayr 20:57 on 24 July, 2013
“Read my post please.
“My beef is no adequate replacement ….also I fail to see why we sell VW and Hooper immediately to teams who will be unaffected by them having appeared in the CL qualifiers.”
Because Celtic want to cash-in as soon as possible. The longer Hooper is here the more risk he decides to stay and we lose him on a Bosman.
That would do me.
Will and Kate with the boy George..aww
https://twitter.com/davidschneider/status/360126431621173248/photo/1
Celtictom ..he could always lock them in a cupboard ?
notthebus:
100% disagree.
If a deal is on the table, its generally on the table at that moment in time. A decision needs to be made at the time.
Wanyama’s value at Celtic peaked at that moment of the Southampton offer (just like Gary Hooper’s value peaked during January of last season).
While I agree that CL qualification is important, the fact that we are offered 25% of last season’s revenue is a business situation that PL COULD NOT risk losing out on.
£5m for forest? were do we sign.most over rated player ever to grace celtic park, in my humble opinion of course
hooper is still 3/1 with skybet to sign for qpr do they know something ? norwich odds on !
….PFayr
21:12 on
24 July, 2013
67heaven
Clearly
How much have you seen of him ??
What have you seen? From yesterday based on energy,enthusiasm and basically a battering ram required for defences of 10 defenders.
SRS
Re VW ….why do we need to cash in as soon as possible
Re Hooper…a few weeks wouldn’t have affected his price ….the window closes at the end of Aug
4 extra minutes ….come on sweden ….could watch this a bit longer …
ntb – were they joking ?
Prestonpans
Very little …that’s why I’m not commenting
….PFayr 21:17 on 24 July, 2013
I didn’t want to sell either of them.
My answer is based on what I think the board are doing.
djmccormack
I think keeping our two best players until we are safely through to CL would definitely be worth the gamble of a few million. However I don’t agree we were put in a take it or leave it situation.
If Hoopers valuation peaked at £6m in January as were lead to believe, it would appear his value has only dropped £1m since then. I really don’t think a few more weeks would have any material difference on his worth, on the contrary.Historically serious business is done toward the end of the transfer window.I
johann murdoch,
Great idea!, he should get Lisa Hague on the staff, she has previous experience I believe!
Germans win another football game …into the final….