Celtic of Scotland has become the closest to securing the services of Egyptian international winger Haitham Hassan, after outperforming a European giant in the current summer transfer market.
Reports had pointed to Marseille as the team most likely to sign Haitham Hassan, after they reached an agreement on the Egyptian star’s transfer to the French club.
Celtic’s efforts bore fruit after working on signing Haitham Hassan for months; he shone with the Egypt national team at the 2026 World Cup, and reports revealed the reasons that tipped the balance in Celtic’s favor over Marseille for the Egyptian star’s services.
The Scottish site “67hailhail” reported, citing Spanish sources, that Celtic showed clear early interest in signing Haitham Hassan and assured the Egyptian star of their desire to bring him into the team.
Celtic had previously attempted to sign Haitham Hassan in the last transfer window, but Jesus Martinez, owner of Real Oviedo, rejected their offer and insisted on paying the €12 million release clause.
According to the newspaper “EL Comercio,” Celtic’s early interest and clear desire were appreciated by Haitham Hassan, before other clubs tried to enter the race to sign him after his World Cup performances.
Marseille did not move quickly to sign Haitham Hassan due to the need to secure the necessary funds by selling players before completing the deal, although this option had appealed to the Egyptian star.
Real Oviedo needs revenue from the departure of some players to ease pressure on the wage cap before registering its new players for the opening match against Granada in the Segunda División.
Celtic took advantage of Marseille’s delay to seize the opportunity, returning to the forefront by leveraging its long-standing interest, Marseille’s inability to move quickly, and Oviedo’s need to sell.
