Celtic youngster Johnny Kenny looks set for a loan move to Shamrock Rovers, according to reports in Ireland.
The striker has only been at Parkhead for less than a year after joining from boyhood club Sligo Rovers on a five-year deal.
Kenny went on to spend the second half of last campaign with the club’s B side as he looked to settle into life in Glasgow.
The Ireland under-19 internationalist spent some valuable time training amongst Ange Postecoglou’s first-team squad during the pre-season trip to Austria.
He went on to feature in one friendly and managed to score a double as the Hoops ran out emphatic winners against lower-league Austrian side Wiener Viktoria.
Celtic decided that the next best step for Kenny’s development was to send him out on loan, and he has spent the first half of the campaign with Scottish Championship side Queens Park.
The ambitious second-tier side are currently sitting in 3rd place, just two points off top spot. However, Kenny has struggled for regular game time with the Spiders.
He has made 12 appearances in total for Owen Coyle’s side, with only two of those coming from the start, and he is still yet to get off the mark in front of goal.
So with the January window quickly approaching, Celtic could look to send the striker out on loan elsewhere to gain more regular minutes.
Shamrock Rovers win the race to sign Johnny Kenny on loan.
One of the clubs that are believed to be interested in signing the youngster is Irish and Europa Conference League side Shamrock Rovers.
Earlier in December, the Irish Sun and the Independent claimed that Stephen O’Donnell’s side were interested in bringing Kenny to Oriel Park. The latter even reported that Shamrock had enquired about Kenny’s availability.
Other Irish clubs, including Kenny’s former side Sligo Rovers, Bohemians, and Dundalk, are all also reportedly interested. However, Shamrock are believed to have the edge, given their links to Parkhead.
According to a fresh report from the Independent, Shamrock Rovers have won the race to sign Kenny, despite the striker having several meetings with his old club.
The report also states that a possible option to buy could be included in the deal, which will see the striker spend the season in Ireland.
With Kenny facing an uphill battle for game time at Queens Park, it seems like the correct move to send him out on loan once again in 2023.
Depending on the length of his next loan, a move to Shamrock could see the striker potentially being involved in European football next season.
It will certainly be interesting to see where this one goes in the coming weeks, as Celtic eye up more regular minutes for Kenny in order to continue his development.
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