Neil Lennon isn’t thinking about converting Mo Elyounoussi’s deal with Celtic into a permanent move.
The winger made a low key arrival on loan from Southampton towards the end of the transfer window and has hit form in recent weeks with goals in Celtic’s last three SPFL Premiership outings.
Last summer Southampton paid Basel £16m for the Norwegian forward and handed him a contract that runs until 2023.
With a regular flow of players moving from Celtic to Southampton it’s fair to assume that a 25-year-old internationalist will be getting paid twice as much as Celtic’s top earner before a transfer fee is considered.
10 minutes in Lennon was asked if the Norwegian had done enough to be considered for a permanent move.
He’s not done enough, but he is doing very well and again we are talking about affordability here. He’s not our player, we are grateful to have him. So far, it’s worked out very well, we’re delighted with the contribution that he is making. That’s the way that he is playing, the added dimension that he has brought to the team but whether a permanent deal can be done further down the line I can’t answer that at the minute.
Should Elyounoussi continue his current form he’ll almost certainly return to the Southampton side for next season or be sold on for a profit on the fee that was paid to Basel.
Mikey Johnston could be back in the Celtic squad for tomorrow’s match against Hibs after resuming full training.