Manchester City defender and Celtic target Jason Denayer has officially joined Ligue 1 side Lyon on a permanent deal.
Denayer was a prime target for Scottish champions Celtic during the summer transfer window, but Lyon have now beaten the Bhoys to the Belgian’s signature in a deal reported to be worth around £12m.
The centre-back who signed for the Premier League giants in 2013, had emerged as a potential candidate to replace fellow Belgian Dedryck Boyata, who is refusing to sign a new contract with Celtic.
The 23-year-old enjoyed a fruitful stint on loan in Glasgow with Celtic during the 2014/15 campaign, wherein he helped the Hoops to Scottish Premiership and League Cup successes under then manager Ronny Deila.
As a result of his outstanding contributions to the first team at Celtic Park, Denayer was named the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year and Celtic’s Young Player of the Year during his loan stint with the club.
A dream reunion was on the cards for a while when Celtic entered the race to land the defender, who failed to make a single senior appearance for Manchester City, but Lyon were quick to react and quickly secured the deal.
Despite only being 23, Denayer has made over 120 appearances at senior club level while also making eight appearances for the Belgium national side.
