Marco Tilio’s forgettable spell at Celtic is all but over — the winger has completed a move to SK Rapid Vienna in a deal that includes a key purchase clause. [Florian Plettinburg]
The 23-year-old Australian has joined the Austrian Bundesliga side on loan, but it’s not just a standard temporary switch. The agreement includes an obligation to buy, BUT only kicks in if Tilio makes 20 competitive starts for Rapid.
Should that threshold be met, the Austrian club will pay €1.5 million to make the move permanent. In the meantime, Rapid are paying €400,000 as a loan fee for the player.
It’s a structured exit that allows Celtic to claw back some value after a move that never got going. Tilio leaves Parkhead having made just 28 minutes of first-team appearances, spread across two brief cameos — one minute in a 1-1 draw against Motherwell, and 27 minutes in a 4-1 win over Hibs.
A combination of injuries and squad competition meant the Aussie never came close to breaking into Brendan Rodgers’ plans. Despite arriving with promise as another “project” signings, he failed to make any impact in Glasgow.
Tilio had impressed in the A-League with Melbourne City, where his pace and flair caught the eye and did so again during his loan spell there last season. Rodgers briefly spoke about Marco’s conditioning when he first came to Celtic and how he struggled to match the intensity of his teammates in training. The step up proved too steep, and he now gets a fresh chance to reset his career in Austria.
For Celtic, this is another case of cutting losses on a player who didn’t fit the system or the moment. The 20-game clause is the crux of the deal — if Tilio earns a regular spot in the Rapid lineup, Celtic will bank a decent return. If not, it’s a clean break after a frustrating year.
The focus now turns to what lessons the club takes from these misfires, especially with more incomings expected before the window closes.
