Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that deals for Kyogo Furuhashi and Jota are nearing completion. Kyogo will join Rennes for £10m while Jota returns for £8m. However, Rodgers plans to sign another striker before the window closes.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that deals involving Kyogo Furuhashi and Jota are expected to be finalized within the next 24 hours. Japan international Kyogo is currently in France to complete his move to Rennes in a £10m deal. Rodgers revealed that the 30-year-old striker had requested a transfer from the Scottish champions four months ago. The Celtic boss also stated that he plans to bring in another striker before the transfer window closes on February 3rd.
Meanwhile, Jota is set to return to Parkhead 18 months after his £25m departure for the Saudi Pro League. Rodgers emphasized that Jota would be an 'absolutely incredible addition' to the team. The 25-year-old attacker had struggled to establish himself at At Ittihad and subsequently moved to France, where he failed to secure a consistent spot in Rennes' starting lineup. However, Rodgers expressed his enthusiasm about working with Jota for the first time as Celtic aims to finalize an £8m move. Rodgers stated, 'He was one player that when I was coming back the first time, I was really, really looking forward to working with. I'd seen him play for Celtic, of course, and seen the impact that he made in terms of creating goals, scoring goals. Virtually before I arrived, it was very clear that he was gone. That was disappointing. Obviously, I've spoken to him at length. The challenge always is, and I know through first-hand experience, is that when you've created a legacy lots of people will tell you not to come back. But my feeling to him and advice to him was come back and grow that legacy to be even greater.' Kyogo had been a key player for Celtic since joining in the summer of 2021 under Ange Postecoglou. Despite his success, Brendan Rodgers confirmed that the striker sought a 'new challenge', as his performances for Celtic had not always been recognized by Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu. Rodgers said, 'Kyogo had expressed an interest to leave a number of months back and then that expression becomes stronger and then it gets to the stage where he clearly very wants to leave. Then, sadly, we have to then do a deal and look to finalise that for him. He's been an incredible player for the club for the three and a half years he's been here and he's not someone that we wanted to lose, but we have to accept where he's at. You can achieve many things here at Celtic. The league might not be one of the top five leagues in the world, but this is a league where you can really develop and show your talent at the very highest level. When I arrived here, Kyogo hadn't scored a goal in the Champions League. If he leaves, he's then shown that he can play at that level. The Japanese squad, there's obviously many really good players in there, but I think that you can show that by being here and winning and playing the type of football that we play and playing at the highest level, that you can still achieve everything that you would like to.'Celtic are involved in initial talks regarding a potential deal for Louie Barry, though Aston Villa remain hesitant to sell the player and have offered him a new contract. Villa prefer to retain Barry and loan him out for his development, as he has attracted interest from most Championship clubs and several foreign teams. Barry was recalled from his loan spell at Stockport earlier this month by Unai Emery to assess his readiness for first-team football.
CELTIC KYOGO FURUHASHI JOTA BRENDAN RODGERS TRANSFER RENNES ASTON VILLA LOUIE BARRY
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