Italian clubs bid for Celtic’s star duo

Italian Serie A clubs Lazio and Palermo are set for a double raid on the Scottish Premier League for Celtic’s Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and Hamilton Academical star James McCarthy, according to the Daily Record newspaper.

Lazio have admitted, much to Gordon Strachan’s fury, that they want to land Hesselink for a cut-price fee. Hesselink has been subject to much speculation around his future, with reports linking the Dutch striker with moves to England, Holland and Italy.

Lazio president Claudio Lotito said: “Vennegoor of Hesselink is a player we rate highly. We’ve been watching him closely for a while. His strength is a real force and he has a lot of European experience.

“He is a player who without question interests us but it depends what Celtic would ask for as a transfer fee. Beyond seven million euros (about £5.5m) is out of our reach.”

Whilst Celtic can remain slightly confident about holding on to their man, it appears a different story for SPL new boys Hamilton, who will struggle to keep hold of their star youngster James McCarthy.

Serie A club Palermo last night admitted they had joined the race for the 17-year-old, who has been linked to a number of top European clubs already this summer.

The Daily Record claims that despite Hamilton not receiving an official bid yet, a number of top clubs are ready to lodge their interest, with bids expected to be around the £4 million mark.

Palermo president Maurizio Zamparini said: “We have been following James for some time. We know all about his capabilities as a player.

“We have been told his valuation has risen to five million euros (around £4million) but we have made an offer to Hamilton based on what we are prepared to pay.

“We are now waiting to see what happens in the next few weeks.”

McCarthy, 17, made his debut for Hamilton aged just 15 and became the clubs youngest scorer in their 144 year history. Since his debut Hamilton has been strongly linked with moves to Celtic, Rangers, Liverpool, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Juventus and many more, with Liverpool believed to have once made a bid for the player.

[Source: The Daily Record]