Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has revealed that real reason why the Hoops could not pursue Patrick Roberts on a permanent contract.

Roberts, 20, made a huge impact during his stay in Glasgow as he contributed 11 goals in 47 games for Rodgers' side who went on to celebrate a domestic treble. The youngster was part of the Manchester City squad during their pre-season of the United States but fell out of the reckoning after the new season kicked off.

Rodgers had initially hoped to sign Roberts on a permanent basis, but he has now revealed that it was nearly impossible to convince the Citizens into a sale, he said: "We would have broken our transfer record for Patrick. We wanted to find the deal that would get him back here. But he’s a Manchester City player. We could have offered them £30m and they would have said no. They didn’t want to sell. So the best option was to get him back on loan."

Citizens boss Pep Guardiola had watched Roberts score in a Champions League game for Celtic against City last season, and he appears to have high hopes on the attacker to make the Premier League cut in the future. Meanwhile, Celtic legend Chris Sutton has also praised the Hoops' signing of Roberts, who he feels will add more creativity to the squad which had lacked the presence of a third striker, he said: "Patrick Roberts is a fantastic signing. Managing to get him back adds real creativity to the side."

Celtic have won the last six Scottish Premiership titles, and they are already been tipped to seal a seventh title in a row due to the strength over their overall squad. Their recent outings in the Champions League have been a major disappointment, and Rodgers would surely want his side to better last season's performance where they ended last in their group with three points.