Celtic told the time could be right to sell 'inconsistent' Nicolas Kuhn as RB Leipzig line up £15m transfer bid
The Hoops star is a man in demand after a strong season in Scotland and a mega money offer could be on the way
Packie Bonner admits the time could be right for Celtic to cash in on inconsistent Nicholas Kuhn.
The Hoops winger is attracting attention from clubs in England and in Germany – with former side RB Leipzig understood to be considering a £15million bid.
Celts are also in the hunt for a string from wide men with Swedish star Benjamin Nygren expected to arrive in a £2m deal from Nordsjaelland and Royal Antwerp's Michel-Ange Balikwisha also still in the mix.
Kuhn overcame a slow start at Parkhead to become one of the stars of the campaign for the champions before suffering a dip in form towards the end of term.
Bonner rates the 24-year-old but admitted it will be tempting for Celtic if a big bid lands.
The Hoops legend said: 'I think all players are up for sale. In the modern world that we live in, everybody's up for sale.
'There's always a price, if that price is at a level then you have to say, okay, we have to make a decision here.
'When Kuhn came in, I, like many, said, he has to do something different. He looked as if he lacked confidence when he arrived (from Rapid Vienna).
'I don't know what his background was and what he was doing before he came but somebody obviously saw something in him to bring him in.
'I've got to give him a lot of credit, and I've got to give the staff a lot of credit, and Brendan himself, to almost turn around his career at that point in time.
'I didn't see it at the start, but the form he had at the start of the season was incredible. I was critical that he only did one thing, he turned back and he went inside.
'But then he started to get the balance right, go to the line, he mixed his game up, and he had pace, he always had pace.
'But he got a few injuries, and then he went off the boil again. And maybe that lack of consistency would be something that you might question.
'Celtic paid, £2m or £3m, to make that profit, I think that you've got to look at it and you've got to say, well, if we can cash him in and bring somebody else in that's a wee bit more consistent with the same ability, that's the challenge.
'Can you get that player for that? And maybe make a couple of million profit in that respect. That's Celtic's model and they've perfected it so well.
'I think he's done really well to turn his game around and he was also a big part of the success last year, especially early on in the season.
"If he does go out the door, he'll go out with people saying, 'Well done, thank you very much. You've contributed.'
'If he stays, then we want him to be more consistent next year, to continue to find form and get back to what he was doing really well.'
Sweden cap Nygren is expected to seal a Celtic deal, with Kieran Tierney already snapped up and Callum Osmand and Roos Doohan on the way.
Bonner believes the attacker looks promising – but he is happy boss Brendan Rodgers is calling the shots.
He said: 'I don't know much about Nygren. You're talking about profile. Does it sound as though he fits the bill? I would hope so.
'What I like, that I've seen develop over the last while, is that the manager seems to be the ultimate one at the end of the day that makes the choice. He said last year it's about bringing quality in over quantity or projects.
'Any manager will want to get that right and be in charge of it. And I think he is. Of course, there's a process, there's a system there that you have to feed into.
"You can't do it on your own. But he has to trust that process or whoever's doing that and how to go about it.
'But ultimately, he's the guy in charge. I think Brendan's a very, very clever manager and he's a manager of people, and that really helps.
'He will know the personality he wants, whether he gets it or not, but I think he will develop the personality also. And he's shown that with Kuhn.'
Pat Bonner was launching the Refugee World Cup Scotland 2025 tournament at Toryglen Regional Football Centre on June 29. The event celebrated the diversity of communities in Scotland through football while standing up for the rights of refugees.
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