Aberdeen legend Eoin Jess hopes to see Connor Barron and Calvin Ramsay stay at Pittodrie amid interest from Celtic and Premier League giants Liverpool, speaking to the Daily Record and the Press and Journal.
This time last year, Ramsay was a little-known teenager with just four senior league appearances under his belt. Barron, meanwhile, was plying his trade for Kelty Hearts in the fourth tier as recently as December.
But, just six months after finding himself on the wrong end of a humiliating 5-1 defeat to Annan Athletic in front of fewer than 400 fans at Galabank, Barron could soon be sharing a dressing room with some of the most talented footballers in the country.
According to the Press and Journal, Premiership champions Celtic scouted Barron as the tenacious midfielder produced a Man of the Match performance during Scotland’s U21 clash with Belgium this month.
Rampaging right-back Ramsay, meanwhile, is expected to seal an initial £4 million move to Liverpool after marking his breakthrough season at Pittodrie with no less than nine assists.
Ramsay’s idol, Trent Alexander-Arnold, would be proud.
Liverpool want Calvin Ramsay and Celtic want Connor Barron
“You have to praise Stephen (Glass, former Dons boss) for having the foresight to give Calvin Ramsay and Connor Barron their chance in the first team,” says Jess, a former Scotland international.
“Stephen deserves a lot of credit and it could be a big thing for Aberdeen in terms of bringing in future transfer fees.
“Aberdeen can’t go out and buy million-pound players but they can produce their own. Everybody is talking about Connor and Calvin and rightly so.
“They’ve shown up really well for Aberdeen, in a team that is struggling, which is a hard thing to do.”
Jess is hoping to see both Barron and Ramsay stay put. But even the most glass-half-full Aberdeen supporter would have to admit that it seems unlikely either player will be celebrating their 20th birthday at Pittodrie.
“Hopefully Aberdeen can hold onto young players like Ramsay and Barron,” Jess adds. “They have both had fantastic seasons and consistently delivered strong performances.
“Consistency is difficult for 18 and 19-year-olds to achieve. Normally, players of that age only play well now and again. That will inevitably bring speculation for those young players Barron and Ramsay.
“As an Aberdeen fan I hope they stay for another two or three years. It is exciting to see Aberdeen producing young talent like them.”
Barron, a dynamic, box-to-box midfielder who loves to get stuck in, could potentially head to Celtic as part of a deal that will see Liam Scales move in the other direction.
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