Celtic could give up on a deal for Hibernian’s John McGinn.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has told The Scottish Sun that he hopes the club can work out a deal for Hibernian midfielder John McGinn.
The Bhoys have only struck two deals so far this summer, having secured loanees Scott Bain and Odsonne Edouard permanently after impressing Rodgers last term.
However, Celtic did sell midfielder Stuart Armstrong to Southampton this summer, and landing a replacement midfielder had to be a priority for the Bhoys heading into the new season.
Their top target so far has been Hibernian’s John McGinn, but it’s fair to say that Celtic’s pursuit of the 23-year-old hasn’t quite gone to plan so far.
As reported by The Scottish Sun, Celtic have now failed with three bids for McGinn, with their latest offer coming to £2million as Hibs have stood firm on their star man.
Signed from St Mirren in 2015, McGinn has become a key player at Easter Road and even a Scotland international, thriving under Neil Lennon in Edinburgh.
However, McGinn has just one year left on his Hibernian contract, and Celtic are attempting to get a cut-price deal done, which Hibs unsurprisingly aren’t so keen on.
Now, Celtic boss Rodgers – speaking ahead of tonight’s game against Rosenborg – has told The Scottish Sun that Celtic are prepared to forget about a deal and walk away if talks don’t progress, but still hopes an agreement can be reached.
“Hopefully the clubs can sort it out,” said Rodgers. “But if there comes a point in time where it’s not going to happen then of course, naturally, we might need to do that [walk away]. We are already players down from last season. We want to strengthen the squad – that’s important for us. I’m aware at this time that there also needs to be patience as well,” he added.
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