Hoopsfend offPrem vultures for Ipswich kid

CELTIC last night completed the signing of 19-year-old midfielder Kundai Benyu from Ipswich.

The teenager has agreed a four-year deal and will meet up with his team-mates on their Austrian training camp when he joins the club tomorrow.

Benyu never played for Ipswich but scored five goals in 23 appearances on loan at Vanarama National League side Aldershot in the second half of last season.

Described as a “box-to-box midfielder” by Celtic, Benyu was linked with Tottenham, West Ham and Aston Villa.

Benyu said: “It’s a massive honour to sign for the Scottish champions and one of the world’s truly great clubs.

“It’s also a great opportunity for me to continue to develop as a footballer under Brendan Rodgers.

“I know there’s a lot of hard work ahead of me but I am ready for this, I can’t wait to get started.”

Benyu was named on the bench several times for Ipswich in the 2014-15 campaign but he was hit by a knee injury the following season and also fell out of favour with Mick McCarthy, admitting himself he “had an attitude problem which put the gaffer off using me”.

Celtic will have to pay compensation to Ipswich after the player rejected a contract offer from the Sky Bet Championship club.

Meanwhile, reported Celtic target Barry Douglas is set to join Wolves from Turkish side Konyaspor.