£10m long-term Celtic target says he’s a boyhood Bhoy

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The Celtic-linked defender was a history with the Parkhead club.

Scott McKenna has revealed to The Scotsman that he grew up as a Celtic supporter.

The Hoops have been heavily linked with a move for the 23-year-old defender in recent years.

Last summer, Celtic reportedly had a £5 million offer knocked back, with Aberdeen holding out for £10 million [The Scottish Sun].

And in the summer of 2018, Brendan Rodgers failed to bring him to Parkhead on that occasion too [BBC Sport].

He told The Scotsman: “My dad was a Celtic season-ticker holder. I went to a few Celtic games round the time they were doing well in Europe.

“I remember being there when Alan Thompson scored versus Barcelona. I used to love going to a midweek game at Parkhead under the lights.”

McKenna comes up against his former suitors on Sunday but, despite admitting his affection for the Bhoys, the big centre-back revealed that sentiment ‘goes out of the window’ when he is facing them with the Dons.

He added: “Of course, when you play against Celtic for Aberdeen I want Aberdeen to win.

“When you become a professional and it’s your job, supporting Celtic goes out of the window. You play for Aberdeen and you want the best for Aberdeen.”

It seems unlikely that Celtic will be going back for McKenna a third time, especially if the figures are believed.

But they don’t really need him right now either. Neil Lennon has healthy centre-back options in the form of Kristoffer Ajer, Christopher Jullien and Jozo Simunovic and the reality is that McKenna probably wouldn’t even get into their first XI.