Celtic’s transfer window embarrassment has taken another turn after journalist Anthony Joseph reported that Charlton Athletic submitted paperwork to sign Chelsea striker David Datro Fofana, but may have missed the deadline.
Charlton were forced to request a deal sheet to buy themselves extra time to finalise the loan, yet there are now real fears the move hasn’t been processed correctly.
Brendan Rodgers had pushed for the 22-year-old as a late attacking reinforcement after seeing Kasper Dolberg return to Ajax and Adam Idah move permanently to Swansea. Instead, Celtic found themselves rejected for Charlton, a decision that underlined how far their pulling power has fallen on deadline day.
The fact that Charlton themselves may have botched the deal adds another layer of embarrassment. For Celtic, the optics are brutal: a club of their size beaten to a player by a second-tier side, only to watch that very deal fall apart through administrative failure.
The Ivorian forward remains unwanted at Stamford Bridge and out of Enzo Maresca’s first-team plans, but rather than joining Rodgers’ side for Europa League football, he has been left in limbo.
As the window closes, the Fofana saga will be remembered less for what Celtic tried to do and more for what they failed to do.
Missing out on Dolberg, losing Idah and then watching Fofana slip towards, and potentially even out of, Charlton makes this one of the most damaging recruitment days in the club’s modern history.
