Ange must avoid disaster on "big player", he may be Celtic's next £49.5m-rated talent - opinion

Celtic have been dealt a major blow in their bid to sign Cameron Carter-Vickers on a permanent basis.

That’s according to a report by American media outlet SBI Soccer (via Leicestershire Live), who claim that all of Leicester City, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Watford and AFC Bournemouth are interested in a deal for the Tottenham Hotspur centre-back this summer.

This interest is sure to provide Ange Postecoglou’s side with a huge setback in their hopes of tying the defender down to a permanent deal at Parkhead, as, despite the fact the Bhoys’ are reported to possess an option to buy clause for the 24-year-old, the USA international could still personally reject a move to Glasgow should he favour a switch elsewhere.

While, ultimately, a deal to sign Carter-Vickers will be out of Postecoglou’s hands should the defender indeed reject the offer of a permanent switch to Celtic, the 56-year-old Hoops manager must nevertheless do everything in his power to avoid the outcome of the centre-back waving goodbye to the club at the end of the season.

Indeed, since joining the Bhoys on a temporary basis back in August of last year, the £2.7m-rated American has been astonishing form in the heart of the Celtic defence over his 25 Premiership appearances, helping his side keep 13 clean sheets, as well as making an average of 1.2 interceptions, one tackle, 4.4 clearances and winning 6.1 duels per game.

The £20k-per-week defender has also impressed in an attacking capacity, scoring three goals and registering one assist, in addition to taking an average of 0.6 shots and making 0.3 key passes per fixture.

These returns have seen the 24-year-old who Callum McGregor dubbed a “big player” average a quite remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.35,