Aston Villa’s third bid valued at over £700,000 for Aberdeen defender, Scott McKenna has been rejected by the Scottish outfit but Steve Bruce is reluctant to give up just yet. A final bid might just be in the talks as Villains are preparing to finish the season by earning promotion through the playoffs.
The Birmingham based club has sent over scouts to monitor McKenna’s progress with the Pittodrie chiefs.
The 21-year-old is a product of the club academy and has worked his way up to the senior team after spending the past two seasons on loan to Ayr United and Alloa Athletic. McKenna has made 18 appearances for Aberdeen this season and slotted two past Kilmarnock to boost the side up to the second spot of the Scottish Premiership.
He has signed a contract with the Dons which is set to run till the summer of 2021. The club manager, Derek McInnes is hesitant to let go of the young prospect in the January window but has not ruled out a transfer in the future. He was quoted, “They came in with another offer on Tuesday which was a bit more again on what they had offered before. That’s the third offer we have had from Hull and as I have said before we have no interest in selling Scott and he won’t be sold in this window.
“We can’t stop clubs making offers and I can totally understand why they would be attracted to him but we are comfortable that he won’t be sold right now. We want to sell Scott at a time when it suits us and when he is at his maximum potential and he still has a lot to go. The indications are there as we are delighted with him but hopefully, if he does go it will be on the back of 150 games for Aberdeen and the experience of winning trophies and more European games.
This might have hurt Aston Villa’s chances to land the young centre-half but they should not give up just yet. They are on a 4-game winning streak as they slotted three past Barnsley to take a 2 point lead over Fulham in the 5th spot of the Championship. John Terry finally returned from a spell on the sidelines and has been a key figure in the backline. James Chester also has put in consistent shifts on a regular basis.
However, the former Chelsea captain’s contract expires at the end of this season, and if the Villans need to plan for a future in the Premier League having a young talent like McKenna will bolster the club ranks. Maybe Bruce can agree on a deal beforehand which will see McKenna arrive at Villa Park on June 2018.
