Hibernian’s Ron Gordon reacts to speculation; Celtic linked with 2 of his players

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Hibs owner Ron Gordon has reacted to transfer speculation surrounding his team, with Celtic linked to two of his players.

The Hoops were two weeks ago speculated as being interested in £3million-rated striker Kevin Nisbet [Scottish Sun]. This comes after January reports that we’re also looking to plunder the Easter Road club for Josh Doig [Sky Sports].

Celtic have a host of signings they’ll need to make this summer. However, despite the fact a new manager has yet to be appointed, former interim boss John Kennedy said that work was being done behind the scenes for the incoming boss.

Gordon has always made it clear Hibs will look after their players’ best interests. If a bigger career opportunity comes up for them, they’ll apparently listen. However, he seemed a touch more defensive when speaking to the Edinburgh Evening News about potential player sales this summer.

“The interests of the players are important to us but, ultimately, not at the expense of the club so what I would like to see us do now is build on the squad we have. There may be a consensus at some stage that we do move a player on but I don’t think we should be thinking of ourselves as a club that is willing to sell players just because somebody offers us money.

“To some degree, with the possible exception of John McGinn, we should have valued our players more [in the past]. Our number one priority is to compete and nothing we do should ever get in the way of that.”

Hibs owner Ron Gordon sending mixed messages; Celtic shouldn’t expect easy negotiations

Gordon appears to be singing from a slightly different hymn sheet than what he read from towards the end of last week. Speaking on the Que Golazo podcast on Wednesday, he said: “The club’s needs and sometimes the players. For them, the opportunity to go and play in the Premier League or Championship in England is an opportunity to make more money. You have a career of 10, 15 years as a football player and we want to make sure our guys have the chance to maximise that opportunity.’

So he seems to have gone from being all about the players’ career paths to all about keeping them at Hibs. That’s fair enough, every club wants to keep their best players for as long as possible.

You have to admire the way the Easter Road side doesn’t bow down to small fees for their top stars. They’ve always tended to try and bring in top dollar for talents that are clearly ready for the next step. And considering all of their best players are under long-term contracts, they have every right to do so.

But from a Celtic perspective, it would make you think twice. Granted, haggling over 100k or 200k for John McGinn is one of the biggest mistakes we’ve made. But if Hibs were to demand £4m-£5m for Doig, for example, Celtic would likely be inclined to raise an eyebrow.

We’re not going to have a go at Hibs for wanting top dollar for their players. We do the exact same when English Premier League teams come calling for our own. But if we’re going to enter negotiations with the Edinburgh side, we shouldn’t expect an easy ride of it.

It remains to be seen how interested we truly get regarding Doig and Nisbet. But if there’s genuine desire there, we’ll need to be prepared to part with a substantial level of cash.

In other news, a UCL and international experienced goalkeeper looks set to become available again after a 2020 link to Celtic.