Bad news for Celtic as Leicester and West Ham close in on 21-year-old

According to the Express, Celtic’s hopes of keeping Patrick Roberts for another season have been dashed with Leicester City and West Ham United keen to procure his signature this summer.

The 21-year-old joined Celtic on loan from Manchester City on February 2016 and has spent two-and-a-half years with the Hoops, making 78 appearances in all competitions, scoring and creating 44 goals.

Roberts had hardly featured for Celtic this season, making just 18 appearances and scoring only one goal in all competitions due to thigh injury that kept him out of most of the campaign.

Hoops manager Brendan Rodgers was reportedly keen to keep the England u20 international for another season but has all but admitted defeat due to the interest in Roberts’ signature.

The forward’s loan expires after Celtic face Motherwell in the Scottish Cup final on May 19 and Leicester & West Ham are two of many sides who will battle to land his signature in the weeks that follow.

With Roberts only making three appearances for Manchester City since joining from Fulham in 2015, it seems unlikely he has a future at the Etihad Stadium. The 21-year-old will set sides back around £15m this summer, says the Express.