Celtic have hit a dead end in their pursuit of £12 million-rated Lazio forward Gustav Isaksen after he reportedly told the Italian giants he wants to remain at the club and fight for his future instead.
It was reported earlier this week that the Danish international has emerged as a late transfer target for Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers to provide cover for Kyogo Furuhashi and recent £9.5m signing Adam Idah. According to Corriere dello Sport, the Premiership champions approached the Serie A outfit proposing an initial loan deal worth £1.6m with an obligation to buy the player next summer.
The 23-year-old has been unable to make much of an impact in the Italian capital since arriving from FC Midtjylland in a £10m-plus add ons deal last summer having scored 22 goals in his homeland the previous year. However, he was handed a second chance to impress by new boss Marco Baroni with a substitute appearance in their first league game of the season against Udinese in which he netted a late consolation during the 2-1 defeat.
And now multiple reports from the Eternal City confirm that Isaksen wants to remain at the club during this window and battle for a place in the starting XI, even though Lazio are open to a potential sale. A deal now looks off the table with Sky Sports claiming that the Hoops haven’t followed up on their interest with a formal bid.
