Afolabi puts pen to paper on two-year deal with Celtic
By Hayden Moore
TALLAGHT’S Jonathan Afolabi has been picked up on a free transfer after being released by Southampton at the end of last season.
A Republic of Ireland Under-19 international, Afolabi was in the stands of Celtic Park to see his new side beat Dunfermline 2-1 in the League Cup on Saturday.
Tallaght’s Jonathan Afolabi signed a two-year deal with Celtic
Celtic manager Neil Lennon snatched the signing of the talented forward on a two-year deal, making him the sixth signing of the summer for the Scottish giants.
Having rejected a stay at St Mary’s, Afolabi had been linked Crystal Palace, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Lokomotiv Moscow before his latest move.
As a free agent over the summer, he starred for Ireland at the European Under-19 Championship in Armenia back in July, finding the net against the Czech Republic before Ireland were downed in the semi-final by Portugal.
A Tallaght native, Afolabi plied his trade with Marks Celtic in Springfield before moving to St Joseph’s Boys, where he was picked up by Southampton at the start of last season.
Although he did not feature for them in the Premier League, the 19-year-old did feature five times for The Saints in the EFL Trophy.
Afolabi is following in the footsteps of another local lad, Ben Quinn, who signed a pre-contract with them back in April that will see him make his move to Glasgow at the start of 2020.
With the 15-year-old linking up with the underage setup, Afolabi will be pushing for a place in the first team after The Bhoys boss, Neill Lennon, spoke of how they will be assessing him in training over the forthcoming weeks.
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