London (AFP) – Celtic have signed French striker Odsonne Edouard on a four-year permanent deal from Paris Saint-Germain, the Scottish champions announced Friday.
The Hoops are reported to have broken their transfer record, spending £9 million, ($12 million, 10.3 million euros) to secure the services of the 20-year-old on a full-time basis.
Eduoard spent last season on loan with the Glasgow giants, scoring 11 goals in 29 appearances as Celtic secured a second successive domestic treble.
“From the moment I walked into Celtic, the club has felt like home to me,” Edouard told Celtic’s website.
“I have been made to feel so welcome by everyone at the club and our fans have given me such brilliant support.”
He added: “Celtic is one of the world’s great football clubs and I was desperate to make my move permanent.
“The scenes from May when we achieved such a historic double treble and made the city come alive are still very fresh in our memories.
“To see our fans so happy is the reason you play football and now we want to do everything we can to bring our great supporters even more success.”
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers hailed Edouard, a France youth international at Under-17, Under-18 and Under-19 levels, as “one of the best young players” in Europe.
“We are delighted to make such an important signing,” Rodgers said. “Odsonne is one of the best young players I have worked with and one of the best in Europe.
The Northern Irishman added: “Our fans saw exactly what he is capable of last season and we look forward to working with him again as we look to build on the tremendous success we achieved last year. I am sure he will be a big player again for us this season.”
Celtic said the signing was the “biggest transfer” in their history but did not disclose a fee.
Their previous record was the £6 million they paid out twice to sign strikers John Hartson and Chris Sutton.
