Celtic transfer target Levi Garcia is expected to sign a new contract with AEK Athens, according to Sportime.

The Greek sports news outlet claims the Trinidad and Tobago international is set to double his wages from €1.2m to €2.4m a year, with his current deal being extended until 2027.

Garcia has been on Celtic’s radar for a number of months, after having scored 18 goals and provided 7 assists in 37 appearances for AEK last season.

However, back in May, it was reported that the Greek Super League club were demanding as much as €15m (£13m) for the forward and speculation about a transfer died down.

A potential Jota replacement

While Garcia did play the majority of matches as a central striker last campaign, he is equally capable playing off the right wing, cutting in onto his stronger left foot.

For that reason, there is a chance that the Hoops were considering the 25-year-old as a potential replacement for Jota, who left to join Al-Ittihad for £25m last month.

Rodgers has made it clear that Celtic won’t splash the cash

Despite Garcia’s high asking price, the money from the Jota deal meant that the forward could have been a realistic target, but manager Brendan Rodgers has since stated that the Scottish champions won’t be spending record-breaking amounts on new signings:

“We want to improve the squad I think everyone looks and thinks we might be bringing in a £15-20m player, but the reality is that won’t be the case. It’s not what the club is based on. There are still talented players out there that we want. There’s still quite a way to go in the window, so we’ll look to improve the squad again. We’ve done a lot of early business, and we want to do more.”

As Rodgers mentions, Celtic have already brought in a number of players, including two right-wingers in Marco Tilio and Yang Hyun-jun, so it was never likely that they would recruit Garcia as well.