Celtic manager Ronny Delia insists the club will not break their wage structure to sign former West Ham striker Carlton Cole.
Cole, 31, was released by West Ham at the end of last season and has since been training with the SPL champions.
However, Delia admits Cole will only become a Celtic player if he is prepared to accept a pay cut.
“Carlton Cole has to go into our salary structure. If not, it’s not possible,” Deila is quoted as saying by the Daily Mail. “But the wage structure here is not a surprise to him. Every agent knows about our structure and knows where the limits are.
[If he wins a deal] we don’t know yet if it’s going to be a one or two or three-year contract. First of all we have to get to know each other. But it should be beyond the summer if he goes for it.
“We have not set a deadline yet for a decision from either party but we won’t let it go on for a long time.”
The England striker was never able to nail down a regular starting berth at West Ham during the latter years of his time at Upton Park, where he scored 25 league goals in his last 141 appearances.
For more stats on Carlton Cole’s career, click here to visit his WhoScored history page
