Flop goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas admits he regrets moving to Celtic after the big-money £4.5 million turned sour leading to a loan exit to Utrecht.
The 28-year-old has escaped the Parkhead fringes to join the Dutch outfit on a season-long loan agreement after failing to make the grade since leaving AEK Athens in 2020 for the Scottish Premiership. The Greek international failed to hold on to a regular starting spot with Connor Hazard and Scott Bain being preferred during debut campaign, while Ange Postecoglou made Joe Hart his undisputed number one following his move from Tottenham.
His time in Glasgow's east end was hampered by a number of high profile errors including during Postecoglou's first game in charge against FC Midtjylland, and he would make just one more appearance under the Australian. However, he now has the chance to kickstart his career and has spoken out on a disastrous two-year stint at Celtic Park after securing his move to the Eredivise.
He insists that there was a disconnect between himself and the Celtic players due to his move during the height of the pandemic.
And Barkas reckons that although the club splashed the cash to bring him to Parkhead, he did not feel the management showed him the same backing.
Speaking to Greek outlet Betarades , Barkas said: “It all happened very quickly. But then the coronavirus came and the situation was difficult on a day-to-day basis.
"I regretted that decision because things didn’t turn out the way I thought they would. But you can’t know beforehand.
“What saddens me is that some money was spent on me and I didn’t feel the investment.
"I didn’t feel I was an important part of the team. But it may not even be the team’s fault. It was a Covid year, everything was different.
"The first six months I didn’t know my teammates, we were in different locker rooms. Celtic is a huge club, but I wouldn’t recommend a goalkeeper to come here.”
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