O’Neill Reveals Why Celtic Failed to Keep Iheanacho

Celtic manager Martin O’Neill has revealed that the club were unable to meet Kelechi Iheanacho’s wage demands, allowing the Nigerian striker to leave the Scottish champions for Turkish side Bursaspor.

Iheanacho impressed during his loan spell at Celtic last season despite struggling with injuries. However, the club decided not to activate the one-year extension option in his contract, with Bursaspor eventually winning the race for his signature.

O’Neill admitted that he had been hopeful of keeping the 29-year-old at Parkhead but said the financial terms required to complete a permanent deal ultimately proved too difficult for Celtic to match.

‘There are always two sides to every transfer. He’s gone. I thought we had a deal with him at the time, but that wasn’t the case and so he’s gone to pastures new,’ O’Neill was quoted as saying by the Daily Record.

‘The option ran out, that’s fine. But the option would be to take someone on similar terms to before, so that’s where the difference was. Kelechi did terrifically well for us as an impact player coming on.’

Iheanacho made a strong impact as a substitute during his time in Scotland, although he started just one match under O’Neill, against Dundee United.

‘It would have been nice to have him for pre-season. He’s chosen to go elsewhere,’ the Celtic manager added.

‘I thought we had a deal with him, but it didn’t materialise. If he’s gone to another club, that’s his decision.’