It was clear that Aberdeen’s centre-back Scott McKenna was a target for Celtic in the summer when Dedryck Boyata was close to leaving the club. However, the Scottish international stayed put at Pittodrie and has again been a rock at the back for his side after recovering from an injury. In an honest interview, which the young defender gave, he claimed that if the right offer comes his way, he is likely to leave the club.
Aston Villa were also said to be interested in the summer and a few days earlier, there were reports doing the round that Wolves scouts are keeping a close eye on the 21-year-old defender. McKenna was quoted as saying, ”There had been offers earlier in the window but I thought they had passed by. I was injured at the time and I was not expecting anything to happen.
”Then on deadline day I had some missed calls from my agent. I phoned him back and he said there had been an offer from another club, Aston Villa. The club decided to knock it back and it is fine. It was the last day of the window so it would have been difficult to get someone else in.
”Offers coming in like that are very flattering. If I keep playing well, there will be more to come in the years ahead. If there is an offer that is right I will get a chance to move on but now I am fully focused and enjoying playing for Aberdeen and wanting to be part of a successful team, winning trophies.”
Celtic cannot afford to play the waiting game and have another insignificant transfer window in January. In the summer, they messed about with lesser bids for the likes of McKenna and John McGinn and Brendan Rodgers failed to land either of them. With Dedryck Boyata set to leave the club and Filip Benkovic also going back to King Power Stadium at the end of the season, signing a centre-half should be on the top of the shopping list for Rodgers. The likes of Jack Hendry and Jozo Simunovic have been inconsistent and the club should look to splurge on McKenna in the winter transfer period.
At 21, the Scottish defender shows a lot of maturity as he reads the game well and times his challenges to perfection. He has great body strength and most of the forwards in the league would find it tough to outmuscle McKenna. And the best part is that he is still just 21 and he can be ”the” centre back for Celtic for years to come.
However, if the Hoops want him, they should be willing to splash some significant cash as it was reported earlier that Aberdeen are going to demand £10m for their centre-half. With clubs like Wolves also in the mix, it’s going to be tough for Celtic to lure him but if they are serious about having him, they can land this defensive powerhouse.
