Do you want the good news or the bad news first?
Good news it is then, which is handy because that’s the order of how it came out of the mouth of Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers.
Rodgers has opened up about the future of one of the most exciting prospects to feature at Celtic Park in years and it will receive a mixed reaction among supporters.
The Hoops boss has insisted that his side’s top scorer this season, Moussa Dembele, will remain a Celtic player for the duration of the next campaign but, unfortunately for fans, he expects him to take his talent elsewhere once the 2017/18 season comes to an end.
“I believed when Moussa came that he probably had two-year cycle,” Rodgers said at a Q & A, as transcribed by The Scotsman. “That’s what I saw. For me, I still think that’s the case. All the conversations I have with him I have no doubt he loves it here.
“He needs another year of Champions League experience and the confidence of scoring goals and playing for such a big club, and probably then it’ll be time to fly.”
Dembele has scored 22 goals since moving from Fulham last June and has proven himself one of the most vital cogs in Rodgers’ Celtic revolution.
But, as we all know at this stage, money talks in modern football.
“That’s the modern game,” the former Liverpool manager continued. “The big clubs in Europe are always crying out for a centre forward.
“It’s just a natural process where if you’re on X amount of money and someone offers you Y amount of money, and the club get offered a ridiculous amount of money then you have to respect that.
“That’s unfortunate. I don’t like it. For me, this is a big club and we should never have to sell anyone. But because of money that is not the reality.
“If it’s the right thing to do and all parties are happy then it’s our job to make sure we’ve got the next one coming in.
“To circle it back, he’ll certainly be here right up until Champions League qualification. If there’s interest then we’ll sit down and talk about it.”
