€8m star sacrifices World Cup dream to secure Celtic transfer

Borussia Monchengladbach loanee Tomas Cvancara insists that he will do everything in his power to convince Celtic chiefs to make his transfer permanent in the summer.

The Czech Republic international arrived on loan late in the January transfer window after the Hoops had spent all month trying to bring in a new striker. The arrival of Cvancara certainly wasn’t the most exciting occasion, truth be told.

A €10.5 million signing in 2023, the 25-year-old had gone down as a massive flop at Gladbach in the Bundesliga and was just coming off a disastrous six-month loan spell in Turkey.

Interim boss Martin O’Neill recognised this and tried to temper expectations even before Cvancara had officially been announced, urging supporters not to expect him to become the next Henrik Larsson.

So far, though, Cvancara has certainly looked a promising signing. The towering forward has produced a goal and two assists in five appearances and shown that he is more than just a target man.

Cvancara: My full focus is on Celtic

Speaking on the Celtic FC Podcast, Cvancara has now insisted that he wants to leave Hoops bosses with no choice but to make his move permanent in the summer. Celtic have a purchase option in the region of €8 million for the Czech.

In fact, the attacker claims that he is fully focused on the Parkhead club and that he is putting international commitments on the back burner for the time being in a bid to impress at Celtic.

A recall to the Czech national team would be a bonus, but it is not something he is actively pursuing, despite his country still being in with a shot of qualifying for the World Cup. Czechia will host the Republic of Ireland in one of the playoff semi-finals next month.

“I want to prove myself and prove why I came,” the 25-year-old told explained. “Maybe, if I’m going to be good enough, show the board and everyone that they have to sign me for the future. This is my goal. I will just try to do my best.

“It would be an honour [to return to the national team] again, but to be honest, this is not my goal in the future. I would say that I want more to focus on the club, that I want to prove that I am good enough, that I deserve to be here, that I want to score goals, make assists, and help the team.

“This is, for me, the closest step in my career, and if they call me up, they call me up, if they don’t, they don’t, but I want to prove that I am good enough to be at Celtic.”

Football transfer news headlines today

Vinicius Junior racism storm erupts as Benfica boss Jose Mourinho blames Real Madrid star

Inside Marseille’s ‘never-ending crisis’: How a European giant hit a new low

Chelsea seek revenge on Liverpool for Jeremy Jacquet transfer

Man Utd Transfer News Today: €80m Sesko replacement identified as contract talks confirmed

Man Utd prepare staggering €100m offer for Premier League star

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers’ new app for all of football’s big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•Google Play

•App Store