Martin O’Neill has confirmed former Arsenal and Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain wants to join Celtic.
Sky Sports News revealed on Thursday that the Scottish champions were in advanced talks over a deal for the 32-year-old, who was due to travel to Glasgow on Friday to finalise the move.
Celtic and Oxlade-Chamberlain are close to agreeing on a six-month contract, with an option to extend by a further year.
“I spoke to him this morning, I think he wants to come and I think he’s coming,” O’Neill said in his press conference on Friday, ahead of facing Dundee in the Scottish Cup on Saturday.
“I would have assumed he’s got a number of options. I think he was even talking about Arsenal, where he was training, might take him on because they might pick up a couple of injuries.
“I’m delighted he’s going to come, so he says. I think he’s doing a medical tomorrow [Saturday] and, all being well, I’m hoping that he signs on.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has 35 England caps
“I think the football club itself has convinced him, if indeed he needs convincing. We might be having a conversation in 36 hours – he might come up here and see what the weather is like and disappear back down again!”
Oxlade-Chamberlain had been training and keeping fit with Premier League leaders Arsenal but said his goodbyes to the club on Thursday.
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Sky Sports News revealed Celtic’s interest in the player earlier this week after he’d terminated his contract at Turkish side Besiktas by mutual agreement in August.
Asked if the 35-times capped England player was someone he liked, O’Neill said: “I do. I genuinely do.
“He has trained at Arsenal for some time since his time in Turkey. In terms of fitness, it’s not match fitness, but it’s fine. We’ll see.
“I think he was very excited about what we were saying. He knows about the football club; he’s a big friend of Joe Hart and Joe’s spoken to him. Not on our behalf, it was just a conversation with Joe.”
Celtic take on Stuttgart in the first leg of their Europa League play-off on February 19 but the registration deadline to include Oxlade-Chamberlain in the squad is now closed.
Celtic were relaxed about the situation, as he was unlikely to be included in their European squad.
Five players joined the Hoops during the January transfer window on loan. Four of those – Tomas Cvancara, Junior Adamu, Joel Mvuka and Benjamin Arthur – were signed under O’Neill.
