'Negotiations underway' for major Celtic transfer as Rangers set to miss out on £4m windfall

Latest transfer bulletin from Parkhead and Ibrox

Celtic have set the wheels in motion in their bid to bring Kieran Tierney back to Parkhead.

The Arsenal left-back is out of contract at the end of the season and negotiations are underway between Celtic and the player's representatives over a pre-contract move in the summer.

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Celtic are also believed to be exploring a loan move for Tierney in the current transfer window as manager Brendan Rodgers looks to bolster his squad for the second half of the season after the surprise 3-0 defeat to Rangers in the New Year derby at Ibrox.

Tierney, who departed Celtic in a club record £25million transfer to Arsenal in 2019, is said to be keen on a return to his boyhood club after falling out of the first-team picture at the Premier League giants.

The Scotland defender has only recently returned from a long-term hamstring injury sustained at Euro 2024 having also suffered an injury-disrupted 2023-24 campaign on loan at Real Sociedad.

Celtic target Kieran Tierney speaks to Arsenal teammate Mikel Merino during a training session at Sobha Realty Training Centre on December 31, 2024. (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)Celtic target Kieran Tierney speaks to Arsenal teammate Mikel Merino during a training session at Sobha Realty Training Centre on December 31, 2024. (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Celtic target Kieran Tierney speaks to Arsenal teammate Mikel Merino during a training session at Sobha Realty Training Centre on December 31, 2024. (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images) | Arsenal FC via Getty Images

He made his Arsenal comeback in the Carabao Cup win over Crystal Palace last month but has remained an unused substitute since. Arsenal have chosen not to trigger the option of a contract extension meaning the 27-year-old is free to sign a pre-contract agreement with any club outside England in the January window.

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Celtic are confident that a deal will be struck, despite interest from clubs across Europe, with Tierney intent on moving back to Glasgow after nearly six years in north London.

Rodgers has pinpointed left-back as an area in need of strengthening with Greg Taylor's future still uncertain as he enters the final six months of his contract while Alex Valle is on loan from Barcelona.

The Celtic boss refused to be drawn on the move for Tierney in a recent press conference although he did describe his former player as “one of us”.

“Yeah, we’ll always be linked with top players, and especially players that are one of us,” he said. “Kieran was an instrumental part of a really, really successful period when I was here, and his talents then took him on to another challenge in the Premier League.

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“So, yeah, we’ll be linked with lots of names, Kieran obviously, naturally because of his situation. But for us, we’ll only ever tell you when we sign a player, once he’s signed.”

Jose Cifuentes in action for Rangers against Copenhagen last January. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)Jose Cifuentes in action for Rangers against Copenhagen last January. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)
Jose Cifuentes in action for Rangers against Copenhagen last January. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group) | SNS Group

Meanwhile, Rangers are reportedly set to miss out on an £4m windfall from the sale of Jose Cifuentes. The Ecuadorian is currently on loan with Greek side Aris, who had been expected to take up their option to buy the midfielder for the prearranged fee.

However, reports in Greece have indicated that Aris have ditched plans to sign the 24-year-old permanently following a change of managers with the player now poised to return to Rangers at the end of the season. It is claimed that Cifuentes fell foul of new boss Marinos Ouzoundidis and was fined by the club after turning up late for training last month.

Cifuentes, who made just eight appearances for Rangers after arriving from Los Angeles FC for £1.5m in the summer of 2023, still has two-and-a-half years left to run on his Ibrox contract.

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