Will John McGinn swap Hibernian for Scottish Premiership rivals Celtic rather than move to the Championship with Aston Villa?
Celtic have been tracking John McGinn for well over a year but this long-running transfer saga looked set to end in disappointment.
According to the Daily Record, the Hibernian midfielder was on the verge of joining Aston Villa on Tuesday, having travelled to the Midlands for talks with manager Steve Bruce. The Mirror (live blog, 11.29am) reported that the fee was expected to be around £2.1 million.
But in a dramatic twist, the Daily Record is now reporting that Celtic, who had previously refused to raise their offer beyond £2 million, have suddenly decided to match the bid made by Aston Villa.
This is the fourth bid Celtic have made for McGinn this summer and it remains to be seen whether this suddenly breathes fresh life into a transfer story that appeared to have reached it’s conclusion.
The Daily Record points out that McGinn will now be free to choose between Celtic and Aston Villa. Interestingly, he is a boyhood Hoops fanatic and the chance to win trophies with the club he supported all his life would obviously prove tempting.
But McGinn has been open about making the step up in his career and the opportunity to prove himself south of the border would arguably represent more of a forward step than staying in Scotland.
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