Kelechi Iheanacho Joins Bursaspor After Celtic Offer

Kelechi Iheanacho turned his back on a fresh Celtic offer and pushed his way to Bursaspor, insisting he told his agent to “do everything possible” to get the deal done.

The 29-year-old Nigeria forward had only arrived at Celtic in September on a one-year contract after leaving Sevilla, following a loan spell with Middlesbrough. Celtic held an option to extend that deal by a further year, but allowed the deadline to pass before manager Martin O'Neill made clear he still wanted the striker to stay and that a new contract had been put on the table.

By then, Iheanacho’s mind was elsewhere.

He chose a very different route: Bursaspor, newly crowned champions of the TFF Second League and a club with ambitions of back-to-back promotions and a swift return to the Turkish Super Lig.

Speaking in his first interview as a Bursaspor player, Iheanacho laid out just how determined he had been to make the move happen. He revealed he had instructed his agent to prioritise Bursaspor despite Celtic’s efforts to keep him, underlining that the Turkish side had become his clear first choice.

The attraction, he said, went beyond the immediate project. “To be fair, Bursaspor is a big club in Turkey and I had heard that they had previously won the Turkish Super Lig,” Iheanacho explained, describing his happiness and excitement at joining a team with both history and momentum.

Celtic lose a forward they were ready to retain. Bursaspor gain a striker who has already shown he is willing to force a decision to be part of their climb back toward the top tier.