A report from Greece claims that Utrecht are paying two thirds of Vasilis Barkas’ wages after agreeing to take the goalkeeper on a season long loan.
After just two competitive appearances last season and the form of Joe Hart it was obvious that there is little prospect of the former AEK keeper featuring for Ange Postecoglou in the season ahead.
In January Sheffield United were unable to agree terms to take Barkas on loan but yesterday Utrecht made the announcement which gives the 28-year-old the chance to revive his career.
Picking up on details about the loan deal The Sun reports:
And according to a report on Greek website Sport24, the Dutch side have committed to paying two thirds of the former AEK Athens’ man’s salary for the next 12 months.
The reports also says there is NO option for the Eredivisie side to buy the star at the end of the contract, although it does claim that Celtic had considered EXTENDING Barkas’ deal for a further year.
That could theoretically have strengthened their hand in any transfer negotiations should the Greek keeper have an impressive season in the Netherlands.
Celtic will be hoping that with the benefits of pre-season training and a change of environment can restore Barkas to the form that attracted a £4m transfer fee less than two years ago.
At the moment salvaging any sort of fee for the fallen keeper seems unlikely but a decent season in Holland could entice Utrecht to make a permanent bid or bring in an offer from elsewhere.
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