Report: John Kennedy not on Hibernian shortlist; untimely Celtic rumour put to bed

By David Walton

April 21, 2022

A report from the Edinburgh Evening News has claimed that Celtic assistant coach John Kennedy isn’t on their managerial shortlist for the vacant role.

Hibs owner Ron Gordon moved to sack Shaun Maloney earlier this week. That led to rumours that the Easter Road side could move for Kennedy – the man who turned them down back in 2019.

Kennedy has worked directly with the Celtic first-team since 2014, with plenty of experience under his belt in various roles. And it looked as though Hibs were keen on him again when the Scottish Sun reported he was being considered.

However, despite there being plenty of managerial candidates from the UK on the list, Kennedy isn’t said to be one of them [Edinburgh Evening News].

Despite Kennedy’s ambitions to one day become a manager, he’s been able to slowly rebuild his own reputation by being a part of Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic backroom staff.

Kennedy has won over the trust of the Celtic boss, and continues to play a key role behind the scenes for the Hoops.

John Kennedy going nowhere as Celtic look to press ahead

Sure, there remain plenty of different opinions on Kennedy and his value to Celtic. Many will wonder what it is he actually does that’s so important at Parkhead. However, all we know is that Ange believes he’s worth keeping around. That’ll do for us.

Everyone associated with last season’s failed 10-in-a-row pursuit were hammered. Kennedy was caught up in this too. However, if we’re going to point the finger of blame in his direction for last season, he deserves credit for the success this year.

In any event, this kind of speculation certainly isn’t welcome. Not when we’re looking to press ahead and secure the Scottish Premiership title. We don’t need any distractions, and this certainly could’ve been one.

This report more or less puts the idea of Kennedy leaving to bed. If he isn’t on the shortlist at Easter Road, it’s highly unlikely they end up looking to tempt him away.

Sure, Ange could’ve brought a replacement in when he left in the summer. But the uncertainty could easily have been an unnecessary distraction at the club and during a key point of the season too.

Kennedy will almost certainly leave one day to take up a managerial role, but it has to be one he feels is right. Given Hibs’ swift sacking of Maloney when things weren’t going well, you could say he’s dodging a bullet here.

In other news, RB Leipzig assistant ready to phone his Celtic contact ahead of Rangers game