Harry Redknapp has spelt out the brutal reality of trying to sign players from the EPL.
Transfer fee inflation seems to be running at around 30% per season with £100,000 a week wages the norm rather than the exception.
Celtic’s scouting priorities seem to lie in Eastern Europe and emerging talents from the French academies while across the city the season ticket launch has been accompanied by links to James Milner, Danny Wellbeck and now Andre Gray of Watford who cosy £18m two years ago!
Explaining the finances of the English game Redknapp told The Sun:
If you are a top-six player, and you are playing, you are not going to leave a top-six team to come and play in Scotland.
You couldn’t get near the wages. People are earning crazy money now. Even average players are earning £100,000 a week.
You talk about the challenge but, without being disrespectful, the challenge is being in Glasgow playing for Rangers or Celtic — but what about the rest of the games?
I watch all the games, if it is a midweek game in Scottish football I watch it but apart from Rangers and Celtic, Aberdeen are a good side but they are NOWHERE near Premier League if we are honest.
Maybe players from lower reaches of the Premier League, you might get them up here for Rangers and Celtic — but other than that you are not going to get them.
If you’re going to get names up in Scotland it’s going to be guys at 33 or 34. Yes, it gives you the chance to win silverware and that’s important for them.
But whatever way you box it up, if you get £100,000 in England and you’re offered £50,000 a week here but you might win a trophy, well you ain’t coming. Of course, it sounds nice but players are not going to take a massive wage cut to come up here for a trophy.
Celtic’s last major signings from England were Scott Sinclair and Olivier Ntcham with transfer fees and wages forcing them to look elsewhere.
Loan signings from the EPL are more likely but under Neil Lennon Filip Benkovic and Oli Burke have been sidelined in favour of players likely to be involved in next season’s Champions League qualifiers which start on July 9/10.