Has John McGinn boosted or killed Celtic’s hopes of signing him?

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Scottish Premiership giants Celtic and Premier League outfit West Ham United want Hibernian’s John McGinn.

It seems that Celtic have been linked with John McGinn since the dawn of time.

Ever since Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers lauded the Hibernian midfielder for his performance against Hearts in a Scottish Cup clash in February 2017, telling the Scottish Sun that he is ‘the type of player you love as a manager’, the Scotland international has been tipped to swap Easter Road for Parkhead.

And the Chronicle reported recently that Celtic were planning a move this summer for a player who has been tipped to replace the veteran Scott Brown for both club and country.

But despite the fact that McGinn’s contract at Hibs ends in a years’ time, he appears to have played down suggestions that he will be on his way out this summer.

“I’ve always said the same thing — I’m learning, I’m getting better and I’m loving playing in front of sell-out crowds,” the 23-year-old, who has scored six goals and set up another six this season, told the Scottish Sun.

“At the same time, though, I’m ambitious. I want to go and test myself at a higher level.

“However, it would have to be something better than Hibs. I’ve got a year left of my contract and it would have to be something special for me to leave.”

Now, whether Celtic qualifies as ‘something special’ remains to be seen. Yes, a move to the green half of Glasgow would given McGinn the chance to play European football and challenge for league titles.

But there is Premier League interest in the shape of West Ham, the Chronicle adds, and a move to England would arguably represent a bigger step up – giving McGinn the exposure he simply wouldn’t get by staying in Scotland.