Brentford boss Thomas Frank wants to keep Celtic-linked Rico Hendry

By David Walton

August 13, 2019

Rico Henry to Celtic looks even more unlikely now after Brentford manager Thomas Frank chipped in.

Henry has been linked with a potential £7million move to Parkhead this summer (The Sun). That’s despite the fact that Celtic have already signed Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo for £3m (The Herald). The departure of Kieran Tierney, however, has opened up a big gap in the squad.

Henry has made 38 appearances for Brentford, but missed most of the first-half of last season with a knee injury. Even so, his club clearly still rate him highly.

Rico Henry (right) is still wanted at Brentford (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

West London Sport have revealed that they’re set to offer him a new contract. And speaking to the outlet, Frank reaffirmed his desire to keep Henry in England.

“Rico is one of our most talented players.

“We all know how difficult it is to find good left-footed full-backs and wing-backs and he’s one of the most talented in the division. So we definitely want to keep him longer term.”

Thomas Frank comments only add to the doubt over this deal

A deal for Henry feels at this point as if it’s getting further and further away. It was only last week that Hoops manager Neil Lennon played down talk of a move for him in the first place (The Scotsman).

The Daily Record believes that Greg Taylor is high on our list of Tierney alternatives. That looks a much cheaper and easier deal to get done if Celtic want to go for it.

Greg Taylor looks easier to obtain than Henry (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Spending anywhere close to £7million on a player with the injury problems Henry has had wouldn’t be ideal. There must be better out there if we go to Europe and actually look for it.

When you take into consideration Frank’s comments, it’s clear that Brentford will be playing hard-ball if we make a move. Henry is contracted to the club until 2021 (Transfermarkt). Therefore, at the moment, Brentford have the luxury of being in a good position here.

Neil Lennon doesn’t come across as keen on Henry (Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

With the English transfer window coming to an end too, that also won’t help the Hoops in any pursuit of the left-back.

If the position continues to be a problem heading into January or next summer, perhaps we can revisit this. For now? Celtic may be best just turning around and looking for other targets.