A young Austrian defender is in Celtic’s sights ahead of Euro 2024. The 23-year-old center back, who came through the junior systems at Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, has a remarkable resume. He spent the latter part of the previous season on loan at Red Bull Salzburg.
Nicolas Kuhn of Celtic is familiar with Flavius Daniliuc, a possible recruit. The two were teammates in Bayern’s reserve squad, along with Malik Tillman, a former Rangers loanee. This summer, their paths may cross once more since, according to German media, Brendan Rodgers is eager to compete with Salzburg for Daniliuc’s signature
Daniliuc’s pedigree is notable. The 6ft 2in defender has three caps for Austria and a history of captaining his nation’s youth teams. His footballing journey began at Admira Wacker, followed by a stint at Rapid Wien. In 2011, Real Madrid snapped him up, where he honed his skills for three years before moving to Bayern Munich. Despite five seasons at the Allianz, first-team opportunities eluded him, leading to a move to French side Nice in 2020, where he finally secured regular playing time.
Sky Sports Germany reports that Daniliuc could don the green and white hoops, with Celtic eager to add him to their ranks. TransferMarkt have the big centre-back’s price around €6m.
Currently, Daniliuc is contracted with Italian club Salernitana, having joined them from Nice in 2022. His deal runs until 2026, but Salzburg’s loan agreement includes an option to buy, putting them in a strong position.
Should the defender make the switch to Glasgow, questions will inevitably arise about the futures of Maik Nawrocki and Gustaf Lagerbielke, who struggled to impress under Rodgers last season. The summer transfer window could bring significant changes to the Celtic backline.
