Southampton put agent Modia in his place
Ivan Modia was notable by his absence yesterday when the deal was completed with Saints boss Mauricio Porchettino keen to stress that the deal had been completed on the club’s terms.
Two weeks ago Modia claimed that the Saints ‘deal’ was dead as Cardiff entered the equation.
Speaking yesterday Pochettino stated: “I want to stress that the deal could have been done sooner but this shows that we do business on our terms.
“The most important thing is that ourselves, Celtic and the player are all happy with the way it has gone.
“The fact that a lot of top European clubs were also keen to sign him shows what an attractive prospect Southampton is to a player who had his pick of the teams in England and abroad.
“I’ve watched him perform at the top level in the Champions League and I believe he will be a valuable addition to our Premier League squad for the season ahead.”
As the move developed into a saga Modia was adamant that his client wouldn’t be going to Southampton.
On June 24 he told Sky Sports: “We are not in talks with Southampton and have not been since their final offer of terms, which was more than two weeks ago.
“The news of the fee being agreed may just be coming out now, but we see little sense in a fee being agreed if there is no reasonable prospect of the player’s terms being met.
“To suggest we are talking with Southampton is totally false, their offer was way below Victor’s expectations. There is no chance of him signing the deal on offer and, in fact, both Celtic and Southampton were informed of this some time ago.
“The player will not be forced into a corner to accept the Southampton deal, just because it is good for Celtic.”
With a £12.5m fee heading Celtic’s way it seems that Modia has gone back on his word but a healthy commission on the deal should provide him with some compensation.
Pochettino said: “We are a big admirer of Victor’s talents and he will fit in well to the team here at Southampton.