We all remember that famous (or infamous?) night after the Champions League defeat at Ferencvaros where Neil Lennon uttered the “there are players that don’t want to be here” speech in front of the European media.
If, that in fact is true, then this report from Salary Sport could reveal the real reason why there are players such as Edouard and Ajer looking to book their ticket out of Glasgow.
Celtic are well known for having the largest squad and salary in Scottish football. The figures I will report here are from season 2020 and won’t reflect any recent contract extensions or changes but this will give you a clear insight at he salary structure within the club and the possible reasons for unrest amongst the playing squad.
In season 2020 the club spent just under £27 million on player salaries which equated to just over £500k per week, covering over 60 first team players. In that, five players earned over £1m per season with a further four players just shy of the million mark.
If rumours are to be believed and that the players in question (Ryan Christie, Odsonne Edouard, Olivier N’tcham and Kristoffer Ajer) are reportedly unhappy that their salaries do not reflect their contribution to the clubs recent successes, then it is little wonder they are looking to move on.
Take out the “they’re hardly going to struggle on that wage” argument as that type of debate is lazy and not constructive when you compare someone like Ryan Christie, for example, who has been a key player at Celtic Park for the last three seasons to Boli Bolingoli (£15k per week), it is hard to argue why the midfielder is looking at pastures new. Christie, currently on just over £7k per week, could easily command ten times that wage should he decide to move to the English Premier League.
The list is a real eye opener and it gives the fans a real cause for concern at how the Parkhead board prioritise their players value when it comes to contract negotiations.