EFL Championship club Stoke City are reportedly ahead of Celtic in the race to sign 23-year-old Crystal Palace prospect Jesurun Rak-Sakyi.
After failing to establish himself as a key figure in the Crystal Palace first-team, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi now seems set to leave Selhurst Park on a permanent basis. According to a report from Football Insider, Stoke City are the front-runners to agree a deal with the English winger, amid interest from Scottish giants Celtic.
Rak-Sakyi joined the Eagles’ youth setup in the summer of 2019. He went up the ranks at some pace and got promoted to the first team in the summer of 2022. While he has been a part of their senior side for years, the 23-year-old has only made 10 senior appearances.
The youngster has spent a significant amount of time out on loan. He was on loan at Turkish club Caykur Rizespor for the first half of the season. During his time there, he was involved in 13 matches and even contributed towards five goals.
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi to leave Crystal Palace?
While Jesurun Rak-Sakyi has been in decent form and he still has close to 18 months left on his deal at Selhurst Park, the 23-year-old is expected to spend the second half of the season away on loan. The Eagles are also open to a permanent departure, as he is not important to their long-term plans.
While speaking about Rak-Sakyi’s future, O’Rourke said, “Yeah again he’s a player that Celtic have looked at for a while. They considered him in the summer but weren’t able to get a deal done. The problem for Celtic right now is they would prefer a loan with no obligation in the deal.
“Crystal Palace are insisting that if he is to go out on loan again this window, they want an obligation included in that deal of around £8million which Celtic are not willing to do. Stoke are the ones who are leading the race for Rak-Sakyi.
“They might be willing to take that player on loan and have an obligation as part of that deal, which obviously Crystal Palace are insisting on. So yeah I think right now it’s probably looking more likely that he will leave Crystal Palace, but obviously that obligation as part of the loan is the sticking point for the interested clubs.”
Celtic are playing catch-up
Celtic have a long-standing interest in Jesurun Rak-Sakyi. The Scottish champions were keen on signing him during the last summer window, but failed to get a deal over the line. Now they are back in the mix to sign the 23-year-old.
While the Scottish giants would love to have him on their bench, they are not willing to meet the Eagles’ demands. Crystal Palace want an £8 million obligation to buy in any loan deal. Celtic are not sure about promising such a buy obligation.
As a result, Stoke City are now considered the front-runners to sign Rak-Sakyi. Not only can they convince the player, but the Championship outfit are also willing to meet the Eagles’ demands regarding a buy obligation. Stoke are weighing up making a formal offer in the near future. While Celtic retain interest, Stoke could move quickly and get a deal over the line.
