Internacional coach Roger Machado has admitted that his club is still finalising the transfer of Alexandro Bernabei from Celtic.
Negotiations to sign the defender started in November but so far the deal for the 24-year-old has still to be signed off.
It seems that both clubs and the player are keen to get the transfer completed but some of the detail, likely to be sell-on options have still to be negotiated.
The left-back discussions at Celtic currently revolve around Greg Taylor, Alex Valle and Kieran Tierney; signed from Argentinian side Lanus in the summer of 2022 it is clear that Bernabei has no future at Celtic.
Brazilian publisher Revista Colorado reports Machado saying:
We are finalising the details of Bernabei. We hope to have him soon. There is a gap with those who are arriving. We live day by day.
Inter has been putting together an operation to keep Bernabei since November. He was the best full-back in the Brasileirao. Obviously Celtic would make it difficult.
I value the work of the management. It’s not easy to define departures and arrivals. Closing a group at the start of the Gauchão. Bernabei might be one of those guys who recovers quickly. Which could shorten the gap of missing the preseason.He won’t play in Bage.
Internacional are in pre-season training at the moment with a friendly on Wednesday away to Bage although the Serie A season doesn’t start until the end of March, running through until December.
A fee in the region of 4.5m euros has been mentioned which would give Celtic a small profit on their 2022 fee but on the back of Bernabei’s form for Internacional there is every chance that he could soon be attracting further transfer attention.
A smaller fee with larger sell-on option could appeal to Celtic while Internacional know that in their colours Bernabei’s career has flourished in a way that no one anticipated when he went on loan last March after starting just three SPFL matches and being left out of the Champions League squad.
Yes it’s frustrating for Celtic for supporters but there not much movement of players this first half of January i don’t think any signing would be eligible for game against young boys but there will be players coming in it wonder how many football supporters would have vote for brixit if they now how damaging it was to there clubs that is important things that never mention another vote we would never voted that way its makes it twice as hard if not awkward politics is affected sport in scotland for the worst people voted brixit to stop illegal immagration made it worse