Soccer Football - Scottish Premiership - Celtic v St Johnstone - Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - April 9, 2022 Celtic's Georgios Giakoumakis celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Ed Sykes
Celtic forward Giorgos Giakoumakis is ‘really close’ to joining Atlanta United, with the two clubs close to reaching an agreement, according to journalist Giannis Chorianopoulos.
The Lowdown: Parkhead departures
It has been a busy winter window so far at Parkhead, with a number of incomings and outgoings finalised.
Ange Postecoglou has brought in Yuki Kobayashi, Alistair Johnston, Tomoki Iwata and Hyeon-gyu Oh, whereas Josip Juranovic and Scott Robertson have departed the club. Moritz Jenz has also cut his season-long loan spell short in Glasgow, and it looks as if another departure is on the cards.
Reports emerged this week that Giakoumakis had rejected the chance to join Urawa Red Diamonds in favour of a move to the United States, but Celtic had yet to agree a deal with Atlanta. That appears to have changed now…
The Latest: Giakoumakis on verge of exit
Chorianopoulos took to Twitter late on Wednesday evening to share what he knows on Giakoumakis’ future. He said that the Hoops and Atlanta United are now ‘close to a deal’ for the forward.
‘Giakoumakis is really close to sign for Atlanta United from Celtic. Clubs are close to a deal.’
The Verdict: Makes sense?
The Daily Record stated at the beginning of December that contract talks had stalled between Giakoumakis and Celtic, so a January exit appears to be best for all involved.
The Hoops appear to have brought in a replacement for the Greek striker in Oh, with the 21-year-old scoring 14 times in 53 games for former side Suwon Samsung Bluewings.
A transfer has cost in the region of £2.5m, and it will be interesting to see how much Celtic receive for Giakoumakis after spending £2.5m on the 28-year-old back in 2021.
About the Author
