Luis Palma on brink of Celtic transfer exit as La Liga side poised to seal the deal
Luis Palma is said to be on the verge of leaving Celtic - with Rayo Vallecano reportedly poised to seal a loan move for the out of favour winger.
Honduras international Palma scored 10 goals in all competitions in his first season at Parkhead but has since falling down the pecking order under Brendan Rodgers, with his cameo off the bench in Wednesday night's 2-0 win over Dundee was just his 10th appearance of the campaign so far, only two of which have came from the start.
The 24-year-old has been linked to Patrick Vieira's Genoa in Serie A, but according to Spanish outlet Estadio Deportivo, it is La Liga outfit Vallecano who will win the race to secure his signature. They claim that Vallecano are close to agreeing an initial loan move with the Hoops for Palma, with the Spanish club then having the option to purchase the player outright for €2.5million (£2.1million) next summer.
It comes just days after Vallecano agreed to mutually terminate the contract of former Real Madrid and Monaco star James Rodriguez. The Colombian icon only joined the club as a free agent last summer but went onto make just seven appearances in total at the Vallecas Stadium.
Palma could be one of several players shown the door by Rodgers this month. Defender Stephen Welsh has already completed a loan switch to Belgian outfit K.V Mechelen while fringe centre back Maik Nawrocki's future at Parkhead is unclear. Full back Alexandro Bernabei has been back in South America with Internacional since last March, with the Brazilian side hoping to land him on a permanent transfer that will see Celtic bank a reported £5million, an increase on the £3.75 million they paid Lanus for his services in June 2022.
With just five months remaining on his contract, Greg Taylor is a target for Fabio Cannavaro's Dinamo Zagreb which could pave the way for a sensational Celtic return for Kieran Tierney. The Scotland defender is set to be released at the end of his contract by Arsenal next summer but the Hoops are said to be working on a deal to bring him back to Glasgow's east end this month.
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