Iheanacho’s Celtic Future Clouded by Failed Vasco da Gama Bid

Kelechi Iheanacho’s future at Celtic is edging closer to an exit, just nine months after the Super Eagles striker arrived at Parkhead on a free transfer, as reported by FootballInNigeria.com.ng. Adding a fresh layer of intrigue to his situation, Brazilian outlet Atenção Vascaínos has confirmed that Iheanacho was offered to four time Brazilian champions Vasco da Gama, only for the Rio de Janeiro club to turn the proposal down.

It is an unusual position for a player who just helped his club to a domestic double. Iheanacho’s representatives appear to be exploring contingency options precisely because Celtic have yet to commit to triggering the one year extension clause in his contract, leaving the 29 year old in genuine limbo at a stage of the summer when most of his peers already know where they will be playing next season.

A Season of Two Halves at Parkhead

Iheanacho’s first campaign in Scotland told two very different stories. He arrived in September 2025 on a one-year deal with a club option for a second season, joining after his Sevilla contract was terminated and a short loan spell at Middlesbrough failed to fully reignite his career. The early signs at Celtic were promising, but recurring hamstring injuries disrupted his rhythm badly, restricting him to completing just two full 90 minute matches across the entire season.

When Martin O’Neill took interim charge of the Hoops in the second half of the campaign, Iheanacho’s role shifted into something he ultimately thrived in: a high impact substitute capable of changing games from the bench. The numbers back that up emphatically. He scored six goals in nine appearances during Celtic’s title run in, a stretch that included the dramatic 3-2 victory over Hearts at Hampden Park that sealed the Scottish Premiership crown. He followed that up with a crucial brace against St Mirren to help send Celtic into the Scottish Cup final, then came off the bench again to score as the Hoops completed a 3-1 domestic double win over Dunfermline Athletic.

By the time the season ended, Iheanacho had collected nine goals in 22 appearances across all competitions and his sixth major senior trophy, an extraordinary contribution for a player who barely had a settled run of fitness all year.

O’Neill’s Honest Admission and the Brazil Approach

Despite that productivity, O’Neill has been candid about not being able to offer Iheanacho any certainty over his Celtic future, revealing that the striker had repeatedly asked him about his prospects of staying on. With O’Neill having since stepped down from the interim role and the club moving to confirm its 2026/27 coaching structure, the decision on Iheanacho’s contract option now sits with whoever takes full charge of recruitment heading into the new season.

That uncertainty appears to have pushed Iheanacho’s camp toward testing the market elsewhere, with the Vasco da Gama approach the clearest evidence yet that a Celtic exit is being seriously considered. Vasco currently sit in the lower half of the Brazilian Serie A table, and their decision to pass on a player of Iheanacho’s pedigree and recent trophy-laden form adds an unexpected twist to a situation that, on paper, should have been straightforward given his performances in the run in.

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A Career Built on Premier League Pedigree

Whatever happens next, Iheanacho’s resume remains a strong one. Born in Owerri, Imo State, he broke through at Manchester City before joining Leicester City in 2017, where he went on to make over 200 appearances and won the FA Cup in 2021 under Brendan Rodgers. He also famously scored the winning goal in a Community Shield during his time in English football, giving him genuine Premier League pedigree that few players moving in Celtic’s current transfer bracket can match.

He has racked up close to 60 caps for the Super Eagles and helped Nigeria reach the final of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. As one of the heroes of Nigeria’s 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup winning generation, Iheanacho’s career has spanned more than a decade at the top level, and his current contract uncertainty at Celtic is unlikely to be the final word on where he plays his football for what remains of his prime years.

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For now, Celtic’s silence and Vasco da Gama’s rejection leave Iheanacho exactly where he started the summer: waiting for clarity that, so far, nobody seems ready to give him.

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