Thursday saw reports from the British press detail Brentford’s efforts over signing Celtic’s Kristoffer Ajer.
The defender has entered his final year of contract at Parkhead and has caught attention of clubs in England and across Europe.
Bayer Leverkusen want to sign a new centre-back this summer and had identified 23-year-old Ajer as a main target.
With a contract expiring in 2022, the Bundesliga side were not willing to meet the €15m asking price set by Celtic for the Norway international.
That’s according to Bild, who add that Ange Postecoglou’s side have ‘received an offer’ from Brentford that’s in excess of the €15m.
‘What irritates Leverkusen very much’ is the German club had found an agreement with the player for a four-year contract. Ajer ‘only wanted to go to Bayer’ and this was also informed to their manager, Gerardo Seoane.
A move from Celtic to Brentford, a newly promoted Premier League side, will see Ajer earn more, while he can play in the Europa League if he decides to join Leverkusen.
As things stand, Bild state ‘it’s impossible’ for Leverkusen to increase their offer [or meet the bid tabled by the Bees]. Despite the current scenario, there is ‘still hope’ Ajer’s desire to join the German club may help them in getting a deal over the line.
Time should tell…
