MOUSSA Dembele last night stated he won’t risk his involvement in the Champions League qualifiers next season just to play in the William Hill Scottish Cup final and backed his Celtic team mates to complete the treble in his absence.
Dembele, the Parkhead club’s top scorer in the 2016/17 campaign with 32 goals to his name, suffered a hamstring strain back heeling the ball in the cup semi-final victory over Rangers at Hampden last month.
The 20-year-old, who has been nominated for both the PFA Scotland Premiership Player and Young Player of the Year awards, admitted that he is hoping to be involved the final against Aberdeen on Saturday, May 27.
However, the French forward, who has been linked with moves to Arsenal, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United this summer as a result of his success up front for Celtic, has stressed he won’t jeopardise playing in Europe by featuring when he isn’t fully fit.
Brendan Rodgers’s side will get their bid to reach the lucrative Champions League group stages for the second season running underway in early July and the Irishman is keen for his leading marksman to be available.
“I’m good and the injury is doing well,” said Dembele. “I’m working in the gym every day, trying to get fit. I don’t know if I’m ahead of schedule, I’m just working as hard as I can and we’ll see what happens.
“I’m just trying to get fit and, if that’s before the cup final, that would be good, but if not I’ll just go on holiday and then come back for pre-season training.
“There’s a chance I could play in the final maybe, but also maybe not. It’s three weeks until the final so there’s still time, but I will listen to the physios. With an injury like this, you need to take care.
“Personally, I will need to be 100 per cent fit if I am to play, especially with a muscle injury. Otherwise, I will just get injured again so I will just take my time. If I am not fit in time for the final then I will come back stronger for the Champions League qualifying games.”
Dembele’s Celtic team mates managed to knock Rangers out of the Scottish Cup after he hobbled off in the semi-final and then thrash their city rivals by a record 5-1 scoreline at Ibrox in a Ladbrokes Premiership match at Ibrox on Saturday.
The fact that Dembel is looking towards playing for Celtic in Europe next season would seem to suggest that it is not, as has been widely predicted, a foregone conclusion he will move on.
“I have got a four year contract,” he said. “I have never said I am going to leave this club.”
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