Celtic face major battle to sign Daizen Maeda replacement

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Cameron Smith | Digital Content Producer

Accredited sports journalist covering football since 2020

Celtic will reportedly face competition from Bologna and Venezia in the race to sign Frosinone forward Fares Ghedjemis during the upcoming summer transfer window.

The 23-year-old was on Celtic’s radar in January, but a move to Glasgow fell through when Martin O’Neill’s side opted against matching the €7.8 million asking price set by the Serie B outfit.

Ghedjemis remains on Celtic’s radar ahead of this summer, with the club expected to sign at least one new forward before the start of next season, but reports in Italy have confirmed that Bologna also want to sign him, with the club’s sporting director Marco Di Vaio in attendance to watch the Algerian score a brace during a 2-1 win over Modena on Saturday.

The versatile attacker, who has featured most prominently as a right winger this season, has registered 17 goal contributions in 34 Serie B games this term, however Frosinone are open to cashing in on their prized asset if they fail to secure promotion back to the Italian top flight.

They are currently in third place in the Serie B table, with the top two teams earning promotion automatically and the next four teams entering the play-offs to determine the winner of the final spot.

Serie B leaders Venezia are understood to be keeping close tabs on Ghedjemis ahead of a potential swoop this summer, while reports in Italy state that Bologna are also eager to complete a move ahead of next season, as per The Daily Record.

Celtic will therefore face significant competition in their bid to sign the attacker during the 2026 summer transfer window, with the prospect of staying in Italy potentially appealing for the 23-year-old.

Confirmed: Celtic want a new attacker

Ghedjemis is one of several attackers on Celtic’s radar ahead of this summer, with the Scottish giants keen to bolster their forward options following an underwhelming 2025-26 campaign.

Daizen Maeda is expected to be sold this summer, with the Japan star eager to depart Celtic Park, while loanees Junior Adamu, Joel Mvuka and Tomas Cvancara are all set to return to their parent clubs after failing to establish themselves as pivotal players since arriving in January.

As a result, Celtic need a number of new forwards this summer and Plymouth Argyle duo Lorent Tolaj and Bim Pepple are both understood to be on their wishlist, in addition to Ghedjemis.

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