Giorgos Giakoumakis closes in on Celtic exit as J.League transfer timeline revealed – but Hoops confident of landing Cho
PARKHEAD chiefs are eager to offload want-away striker Giorgos Giakoumakis to Urawa Red Diamonds.
The Japanese outfit are deep in talks over a £8m deal for the Greek hitman.
They know there are other clubs interested, with Italians Sampdoria eager to strike an agreement with the Hoops and the player, who finished last season as the Premiership’s joint-top scorer.
But the J.League side hope to land Giakoumakis by tabling him a big-money offer he cannot refuse.
Further discussions are set to take place in the next couple of days, which could see a deal done by the weekend.
Celtic's recruitment chiefs are lining up a replacement for the striker and continue to find new signings for Ange Postecoglou.
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And South Korea striker Cho Gue-sung could be their final piece of their January jigsaw.
Club bosses are in talks with his club Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, and it’s understood the Premiership champions have tabled a £2.6m offer, with a 50 per cent sell-on clause up to £5.2m.
MLS outfit Minnesota are also in talks and have offered a bigger transfer fee of £4.4m up front, with a 30 per cent sell-on.
The Hoops are thought to be confident their deal will be accepted.
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The standout World Cup star admitted earlier in the week that he was aware of interest from Celtic.
Speaking about Postecoglou's side, he said: "Celtic have six Japanese players in its squad.
"As you can see there, it is a team that has invested heavily in the Asian market over the past few years and there have been talks."
Meanwhile, Postecoglou has warned his players to be wary of a Viaplay Cup shock to Kilmarnock.
The Hoops face Derek McInnes’ side in Saturday’s semi-final — just a week after beating them 2-0 in a Parkhead league clash.
Postecoglou said: “There is no doubt the cup is different from the league. You just have to look at what happened down south in the FA Cup over the weekend, and just in cup football in general.
“I have been around long enough to know that there is always a different element to those games.
“It allows players to play with a little less fear, even though there is so much on edge. Particularly teams that are not expected to win — because they have nothing to lose.
“It’s not like they are losing three points or falling behind in the league table.
“You give it all out there and see what comes of it, so we have to be ready for that. We need to have the same sort of mentality and not just expect that, because we were successful in last week’s game, it will be the same.
“It’s a bit of an unusual situation, where you are playing the same team two weeks in a row.
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“I have no doubt that Derek will have his team up for it and we’ve got to be ready. We will be up for it as well.”
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