Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has revealed that he wants to re-sign Patrick Roberts on loan this summer, but has accepted that the decision is out of his hands.
Roberts, 20, represented Celtic on loan between January 2016 and June 2017, scoring 17 times in 60 appearances for the Scottish giants over an 18-month period.
The England Under-20 international has travelled with the Manchester City squad for their pre-season tour of North America, however, and Rodgers has conceded that it might be difficult to re-sign the attacker ahead of the 2017-18 campaign.
"It's something we would look at. Pat would be amazing for here. I think everyone could see that," Rodgers told reporters. "But it all goes down to, one, Manchester City and how they see his future there. He has gone away on tour with them and got some game time. They will make a decision after that.
"Two, the boy might not want to come back. He might want to play in the Premier League if he has somewhere to do that. He might fancy a spell in Europe. But what he knows is that he has a great place here if it comes to that. The club can bring him here. It's more going to be whether the player sees this as the next step for him."
Sporting Lisbon have also been linked with a loan move for Roberts, who joined Man City from Fulham in the summer of 2015.
Matt Law
