Signing Dembele would be a great coup for Celtic, insists McCormack
SCOTLAND forward Ross McCormack believes Celtic will achieve a major signing feat if they land his Fulham strike partner Moussa Dembele.
The Parkhead club have joined the list of suitors for the French teenager who is out of contract following a 17-goal season playing alongside McCormack at Craven Cottage.
‘If Celtic manage to sign Moussa, that will be a real coup for them,’ said McCormack. ‘Wherever he ends up this summer, it will be at a good club.
‘I would think Celtic will be doing well to get him. He is 19 years old and, halfway through his first full season playing in our team, he nearly went to Spurs.’
Dembele is not the first striker to benefit greatly from partnering McCormack.
The likes of Jay Bothroyd and Matt Smith enjoyed the most productive scoring seasons of their careers playing alongside the Scotland international at Cardiff City and Leeds United respectively.
Where Dembele differs is that his excellent campaign with McCormack looks like teeing up the youngster for a move to one of Europe’s biggest stages — and Brendan Rodgers hopes that will be the Champions League with Celtic. The French Under-20 international, who formed a 40-goal partnership with McCormack, was close to moving
to Spurs in January only for a £6million deal to collapse.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Dembele’s former club Paris Saint-Germain are among those credited with an interest in a player available to Celtic for a compensation fee to Fulham as he is under the age of 24.
McCormack believes Celtic are on the trail of an exciting young player with any amount of improvement in him as an attacking talent.
The former Rangers striker said: ‘Moussa has a bit of everything — pace, strength, is a decent finisher.
‘He won’t drift out and put in a cross. He’s a real goalscoring centre-forward.
‘He’s a very good young player who’s had a fine season and scored a few goals.
‘It’s hard to know where he will end up.’
Amid the clutch of elite clubs to be tracking Dembele, Celtic might have an edge in that they could offer him regular starts and Champions League football.
Rodgers requires a striker to help Leigh Griffiths after letting Anthony Stokes, Carlton Cole and Colin KazimRichards leave the club in the wake of Celtic winning the title again to make it five in a row.
‘I have to be honest and say that I would be surprised if he goes to Celtic when you think he was close to joining Spurs in January,’ admitted McCormack.
‘But Celtic are a massive club and if you’re going to sign for anyone in Scotland, it’s either there or Rangers.
‘I always thought he might return to France to Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco or Marseille.’