Kilmarnock boss plays down Greg Taylor to Celtic chat

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Kilmarnock boss Angelo Alessio has reiterated his desire to keep Greg Taylor despite interest from Celtic.

Earlier this week, the Daily Record reported that the Hoops had sent scout Tosh McKinlay to cast an eye over the 21-year-old who is contracted at Rugby Park until the summer of 2021.

German side Nurnberg have already had a £500,000 bid rejected for the full-back this summer but they could still return to the table with another offer.

But under-fire Killie boss Alessio has moved to play down the discussion about the Scotland international moving away.

“I want to keep the best players in our team: Taylor, O’Donnell and other players,” he told the Scotsman.

“In the next two weeks I don’t think this player can go to other teams. I’ve read about Greg but I think they are just rumours.

“I don’t think (the club would sell him) because the club and I want to keep the best player in our team.”

Would Taylor be a good fit at Celtic?

There is clearly some level of interest from Celtic in the defender who recently earned his first cap for his country. The fact we sent one of our scouts to watch him play suggests we are keen to find out more. Whether we liked what we saw is another matter.

Killie were pretty poor in the defeat to Hamilton Accies so it may be fair to suggest that Taylor wasn’t at his best either.

However, what he does possess is immense potential. At the age of 21 he’s featured over 100 times for his club side and has now experienced the big European occasion – albeit only once.

He shares a lot of similarities to the recently departed Kieran Tierney. Both are a throwback to the old fashioned full-back. They like to defend first and foremost, but can also get forward and make telling contributions in the final third.

There would be very little risk attached in a move for Taylor. He knows the Scottish game and is generally quite a consistent performer. Celtic’s dilemma may be whether they should take the gamble on a slightly more exciting option.