Turnbull joy at £3.25m move to Parkhead
DAVID TURNBULL last night expressed his delight after finally securing a delayed £3.25million move to Celtic. The Motherwell midfielder (above) was robbed of a switch to Parkhead when he failed a medical last June. As Sportsmail first revealed on July 20, however, Celtic head of recruitment Nicky Hammond revived their interest in pre-season. And despite the hammer blow of a £30m financial hit caused by a shock Champions
League exit to Ferencvaros on Wednesday night, the Scottish champions moved yesterday to complete a four-year deal for the 21-year-old. ‘I’m absolutely delighted to join Celtic, especially after everything that’s gone on over the last year,’ Turnbull told the Celtic website. ‘To join the biggest club in Scotland,
I’m just delighted. Looking back, the injury was the worst time of my life, really. ‘It was so hard to take but I knew that, if I worked hard, kept my head down, the chance could come around again. Now I can’t wait to get started.’ Turnbull made 34 appearances for Motherwell, scoring 16 goals and laying on seven assists. The Fir Park club will land the biggest transfer fee for the sale of a player in their history with his departure. Ironically, Turnbull’s first involvement could be against the club he has just left in Sunday’s Premiership clash at Parkhead. Insisting he is fit and ready to get cracking, he added: ‘The success of Celtic in recent seasons has been incredible. As soon as I’m required, I’m ready. ‘I’ve played in the first five games of the season. I’ve managed to get a goal. I feel really fit and I’m just raring to go and make my mark here at Celtic. ‘It would be brilliant to win silverware this season at Celtic. ‘I obviously grew up playing with Motherwell, and while we were involved in cup finals, there was maybe less of an expectation to get there. It’s the opposite at Celtic.’