The very latest Celtic transfer news. We bring you news regarding Nottingham Forest defender Scott McKenna and Hoops loanee Paulo Bernardo as part of Friday’s January window bulletin.
It’s now January 5 and things are starting to heat up a little bit on the transfer front for Celtic this month. Nat Phillips remains the only incoming or outgoing after he returned to Liverpool.
But there have been a number of interesting reports emerging last night and today. 67 Hail Hail provide you with the latest on McKenna and Bernardo, as well as who may leave Parkhead in January.
Scott McKenna Celtic ‘interest
According to Sky Sports, the Hoops are taking an interest in signing Nottingham Forest and Scotland centre-back Scott McKenna.
McKenna is now surplus to requirements at the City Ground and is free to find another club. His contract expires at the end of the season but Forest may be keen to loan him out in January beforehand.
The Scotland defender has played just 417 minutes of Premier League football this term and his last outing in the competition was against Burnley in September.
It is clear that new Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo isn’t very keen on McKenna – the Portuguese has avoided selecting the 27-year-old in each of his three competitive matchday squads so far.
Rangers have also been credited with an interest in the former Aberdeen star so it seems a two-way Glasgow transfer fight is set to ensue for McKenna’s signature.
Paulo Bernardo release clause
Paulo Bernardo has been in the news for his excellent Celtic form of late, including a tremendous strike against Rangers in the Glasgow derby.
But he has made headlines again for a different reason and it is centred around his Benfica release clause.
The Portuguese central midfielder signed for the Bhoys on a season-long loan in the summer and it was made known at the time that there was no option to buy in the deal.
But it was mooted that Bernardo had a £1.5m release clause, which at the moment seems like a no-brainer to trigger from a Parkhead point of view.
However, Football Scotland are now reporting that his release clause is in fact worth around £6m. Journalist Mark Hendry claims, however, that there could be ‘wiggle room’ for Celtic to negotiate a lower fee if Brendan Rodgers is keen to pursue a permanent deal.
Nine players who could leave Celtic in January
Daily Mail journalist Stephen McGowan has been writing about who at Celtic is surplus to requirements under Rodgers and thus, potentially face exits this month. These are:
- Benji Siegrist
- Alexandro Bernabei
- Gustaf Lagerbielke
- Yuki Kobayashi
- David Turnbull
- Yosuke Ideguchi
- Kwon
- Marco Tilio
- Mikey Johnston
This is what the renowned reporter had to say word-for-word: “The list of surplus players facing a tap on the shoulder is lengthy. Goalkeeper Benji Siegrist recently changed agent with a view to sourcing first-team football in January.
“Argentine left-back Alexandro Bernabei simply hasn’t worked out and will surely move on to make room for a replacement. Nat Phillips has already ended his loan agreement and returned to Liverpool and, as Mail Sport first revealed, the club will listen to offers for £3million summer signing Gustaf Lagerbielke.
“With Maik Nawrocki finally staking a claim for first-team inclusion and a shoulder injury to Stephen Welsh less serious than first feared, Yuki Kobayashi is also likely to follow former first-team coach Harry Kewell to Yokohama F Marinos.
“Out of contract in the summer, intrigue surrounds the situation of David Turnbull. A talented footballer, the midfielder has struggled to find the consistency required to nail down a starting slot under Rodgers and has now been overtaken in the pecking order by Paulo Bernardo.
“Midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi is set to net the club £870,000 by joining Vissel Kobe in Japan when the window opens.
“Signed from the South Korean second tier, Kwon Hyeok-kyu is likely to return home on loan, while Marco Tilio — currently at the Asian Cup with Australia — is emerging as the new Daniel Arzani.
“Despite showing promise as an impact sub, meanwhile, Mikey Johnston has reached the stage where he needs to head elsewhere to start games consistently.”
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