Celtic’s hopes of signing Patrick Roberts ahead of their final Champions League qualifier are fading after the winger was included in Manchester City’s travelling party for a training camp in Catalonia.
Manager Brendan Rodgers is keen to re-sign the winger on loan following a successful 18-month spell in Glasgow.
Nice and Southampton have also been linked with loan bids for the former Fulham player.
Roberts has been a big success for the Scottish champions, scoring 17 goals in 60 appearances in all competitions.
Celtic can add one new player to their squad for Wednesday’s Champions League play-off first leg against Astana if the signing is registered before 11.00pm on Tuesday.
Rodgers wants to add to his forward options due to ongoing fitness concerns over Leigh Griffiths and Moussa Dembele.
Griffiths is currently struggling with a calf problem, while Dembele has been ruled out of Wednesday’s game with a hamstring injury.
Celtic are also short of defenders, with Dedryck Boyata and Erik Sviatchenko both out with knee injuries.
Rodgers’ side are now just 180 minutes away from a place in the Champions League group stage after beating Rosenborg in the third qualifying round.
Kazakhstan’s Astana are familiar opponents after the pair met last year just one round earlier.
Dembele’s injury-time penalty – his first goal for the club – sealed a 3-2 aggregate win, and Celtic will be eager to claim a repeat success and secure a £30 million windfall for qualifying for the group stage.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
