‘Good job I didn’t get him!’ – Neil Warnock tried to sign under-fire Celtic defender Boli Bolingoli for Middlesbrough last week
Neil Warnock has revealed he tried to sign under-fire Celtic defender Boli Bolingoli on loan for Middlesbrough last week.
Bolingoli has received heavy backlash for breaking quarantine rules by taking a secret trip to Spain before the Hoops’ Scottish Premiership match against Kilmarnock on August 9.
Subsequently, Celtic’s matches with St Mirren and Aberdeen this week were suspended - and his actions could see the Scottish Government put a halt to the current top-flight season.
Warnock is attempting to add recruits to his Middlesbrough side ahead of the new Championship season, which starts on September 12.
And Bolingoli, a £3million signing from Rapid Vienna last summer, was on his list of targets.
He told talkSPORT: “I rang Celtic last week asking about Bolingoli on loan! It’s a good job I didn’t get him, isn’t it?”
Asked if he would go back in for him, Warnock replied: “No, not now. It’s just one of those things.
“We lost about five or six players and we’ve only signed one at the minute.
“We’re trying to catch up and it’s difficult in the current market.”
Celtic boss Neil Lennon has cast serious doubt over Bolingoli’s Hoops future, admitting it would be ‘very difficult’ for the now quarantined player to be welcomed back.
An irate Lennon said: “I am livid, it's a total betrayal of trust.
”He took a flight to Spain on the Monday and flew back on Tuesday - one day in Spain, no logic to that - and decided to keep it to himself.
"We couldn't have done any more as a club to maintain the standards. This is a rogue who has gone off tangent and decided to do something very, very selfish.
"He trained all week in this bubble and was part of the squad for Sunday and put everybody at risk, the Kilmarnock players and staff as well.
"We were livid and appalled. We have been bitterly, sorely let down by the selfish actions of one individual. He blatantly disregarded instructions.
"The players are angry, disappointed and frustrated. It's just not good enough. It's just simply not good enough.”