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Man City passed up chance to sign Van Dijk after ignoring transfer advice, says ex-Celtic manager Deila

Manchester City passed up the chance to land Virgil van Dijk when the exit door opened at Celtic, with former Hoops boos Ronny Deila revealing that his transfer advice fell on deaf ears.

The Dutch centre-half first starred on British soil during a productive two-year stint at Parkhead. His potential was quickly noted by those in the Premier League, with a switch to England only becoming a matter of time.

Southampton ultimately won that race, but only after those at the Etihad Stadium had been sounded out.

Van Dijk would register on City’s radar two-and-a-half years later, but once again they missed out on his signature as a record-breaking £75 million ($92m) transfer to Liverpool was completed.