Celtic have a “50-50” chance of signing Ghana winger Mubarak Wakaso in time for the first leg of their Uefa Champions League play-off against Maribor in Slovenia on Wednesday night, according to assistant manager John Collins.
The Rubin Kazan player will move to Parkhead subject to a medical and the Scottish champions are hoping the loan deal is completed before the deadline, which is 2am UAE time, so that he can be registered for the match.
“It is probably 50-50. The medical is being done overseas and hopefully he will join us over there, fingers crossed, but nothing is definite,” Collins said.
“He has pace in the wider areas, can deliver on his left foot, that is what we are looking for, to add pace at the top of the pitch.”
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Collins confirmed that James Forrest, who has a hamstring injury, and Adam Matthews, with a calf problem, will miss the match.
Celtic’s tie against Maribor was finally confirmed on Monday night after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) turned down Legia Warsaw’s last-ditch request to be re-admitted to the Champions League.
The Polish club had beaten the Scottish side 6-1 on aggregate in the third qualifier but were punished by Uefa for bringing on a player who should have been suspended in the second leg at Murrayfield.
Legia failed in their appeal to European football’s governing body before taking the case to CAS and, after days of speculation, Collins is focusing on the task in hand.
The former Celtic midfielder said: “I don’t need to tell the players, everyone at the football club knows that we have a second chance and it is important that we capitalise on that.
“We are looking forward to it. They are the Slovenian champions, we have had them watched a few times but again, it is all about our performance – we are getting quicker, sharper and more confident.
“They are probably a similar standard (to Legia) but we are two or three weeks further forward in our preparation.”
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