Darren O’Dea hopes Celtic will allow him to leave the club for nothing, if he is not part of manager Neil Lennon’s plans for next season.
The defender has not played for the Glasgow club since May 2010, spending the last two seasons on loan at Ipswich Town and Leeds United respectively.
O’Dea’s contract at Celtic is up but the club have the option to extend his deal for a further year, potentially leaving the 25-year-old in limbo as the SPL side instead seek a fee for his services.
“Ideally in my world it makes sense just to let me go,” O’Dea told the Scotsman.
“If I am not part of the plans I will look after myself. Nothing is happening at the moment. I have to wait for Peter Lawwell to make up his mind.
“I owe a lot to Celtic and they have put a lot of work into me and he [Lawwell] probably feels that they deserve something back for it.
“It is down to him to make that decision, not me. If he feels that he is due a fee then he will give me an extra year.
“If he thinks he will let me go then that is better for me as it would be easier to move clubs. But it is down to him.”
Championship side Leeds United decided against extending O’Dea’s stay at Elland Road, despite playing 35 times for them in 2011/12.
The defender is currently with the Republic of Ireland squad ahead of the summer’s European Championships, having made Giovanni Trapattoni’s final selection.
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