OPINION
Celtic chief Peter Lawwell could be about to hit the jackpot by signing Motherwell midfielder David Turnbull with the 19-year-old reportedly jetting into Glasgow to complete his move to Parkhead.
According to the Herald, Turnbull has cut short a holiday with some of his Motherwell team-mates in order to travel to Glasgow and undergo a medical with the Scottish Premiership champions.
Motherwell confirmed via their official Twitter account on Wednesday that they have agreed a club record fee to sell Turnbull to Celtic this summer and judging by this latest update, the deal is almost complete.
We have agreed a fee with Celtic for the potential sale of David Turnbull.
Should the deal go through, the value will vastly exceed our previous record fee received. It will be transformational for us as we continue to operate as a fan-owned club.https://t.co/1hbXcMf8od pic.twitter.com/rQa1HQm06o
— Motherwell FC (@MotherwellFC) June 12, 2019
Turnbull will surely be a superb signing for Celtic, who need to strengthen most areas of their squad before next season kicks off if they want to try and win an unprecedented fourth domestic treble in a row and reach further in Europe.
Although Turnbull lacks European experience, he is a young, hungry player who could stake a solid claim for a spot in Neil Lennon’s starting line-up next term, alongside Scott Brown in the heart of the Hoops midfield.
Last term, the Scotland Under-21 international scored 16 goals and supplied seven assists in 34 appearances across all competitions.
Scoring almost a goal in every other appearance is not even something that Celtic’s top scorer Odsonne Edouard could brag in the 2018/19 campaign, so to see them kind of numbers come from a midfielder is truly impressive.
As mentioned, Turnbull could forge quite the partnership with the more defensive-minded Brown in the heart of the midfield next season.
Olivier Ntcham has been linked with leaving Celtic Park [Scottish Sun] and that could free up a slot in Lennon’s starting line-up for Turnbull to come in and provide a cutting edge from one of the deeper areas of the pitch.
As well as all the on-field reasons as to why Turnbull would make a good signing, Hoops chief executive Lawwell is surely considering the player’s potential re-sale value and how snapping up could turn out to be a massive financial boost for the club.
BBC Sport claims that the Bhoys are paying £3million for the 6ft 1 [transfermarkt] midfielder, but that value could rise significantly won he has become more established in the Scottish Premiership.
As long as he is playing regularly, Turnbull is bound to pick up silverware, play European football and earn senior caps for Scotland while donning the green and white hoops.
All of that will see his value rise and rise until eventually there will be links between him and a mega-money move south of the border.
Yes it’s a bit premature to think about now, but that is surely the thinking behind this move.
Turnbull could be a superb signing for Celtic this summer, for many reasons.