Report details EIGHT-fold salary increase on offer to Celtic target

Celtic are reported to be offering Luis Palma an eight-fold salary increase.

The goal-scoring winger moved from Honduras to ARIS Thessalonika in January 2022 with Deportivo Vida and an agent having a 25% stake in any future transfer fee.

Six weeks on from selling Jota to Al Ittihad it looks like Palma will have the task of replacing the former Benfica winger with a massive salary hike on the table.

Greek publisher Gazetta reports:

Yesterday (24/8) Luis Palma ‘s absence from Aris training was not accidental, apparently related to the culmination of negotiations for the next stage of his career. Following the Daily Mail ‘s disclosure of Celtic’s offer to purchase the player’s rights, it is clear that both the “yellows” and the footballer are being asked to choose between it and the equivalent from Saudi Arabia.

According to information from Gazzetta , Celtic offers the footballer a multi-year cooperation contract with annual salaries that are almost eight times higher than those he has at Aris and an amount close to 650,000 euros for the first year alone. On the other hand, the Saudis – after they had initially agreed with Aris and encountered difficulty in convincing the player – proceeded to increase the offer, offering around 5.5 million euros for a three-year contract!

The financial difference is big but Luis Palma seems to have made up his mind as he prefers to go to Celtic and play at the top club level as he has dreamed of since he was a little boy. There is no definitive agreement, but the 23-year-old striker from Honduras expressed his desire to the people of Mars and usually, in these cases, the “want” of the footballer prevails.

We remind you that according to the Daily Mail, Celtic submitted an offer of more than 4 million euros to the “yellows”, while the rumor of an increase in the offer has not been confirmed. It is also known that Aris does not have the player’s rights completely, but the overwhelming percentage as approximately 25% belongs to the player’s agent and also to Deportivo Vida . In the end, within the next few hours a definitive development is expected, although Palma seems to have made his decision.

It looks certain that Brendan Rodgers will have any new faces to select from for tomorrow’s match against St Johnstone, this morning the hoops boss supervised training of a squad badly hit by injuries in central defence.

Liam Scales looks like coming in from the cold to partner Gustaf Lagerbielke with Tomoki Iwata the only other realistic alternative in central defence.

Palma looks like being the first of a couple of signings arriving next week but it will be a major risk deciding whether anyone new to Scotland should be pitched in to next week’s clash at Ibrox after less than a week in the country.

CLICK HERE for Palma’s Transfermarkt profile.