John McGinn has been tipped to replace Celtic skipper Scott Brown at Parkhead – and that is certainly easier said than done.
As much as Celtic supporters would wish otherwise, Scott Brown cannot go on forever. The long-serving skipper is 32 these days and as influential as ever in The Hoops’ engine room.
However, with Brown missing the last few weeks with injury before returning for Wednesday’s 3-0 Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich, Celtic have endured a worrying glance into a future without the veteran patrolling their midfield.
Shaky displays against Hibs and Dundee at home, Celtic drawing the first 2-2 and only narrowly winning 1-0 in the latter, left supporters in no doubt just how essential Brown remains even at the wrong side of 30. Manager Brendan Rodgers, then, is facing up to an unenviable task finding a player capable of replacing a bonafide club legend who has won 13 trophies and played well over 400 games for the club.
John McGinn, then, would arrive at Parkhead with huge pressure on his shoulders if he, like Brown, swaps Hibernian for Celtic. Former Hibs boss Alan Stubbs, who brought McGinn to Easter Road in 2015, told the Daily Record that the 22-year-old would be a ‘readymade replacement’ for Brown.
And McGinn certainly aced his audition in Hibs’ 2-2 draw with Celtic last month, scoring two stunning goals to secure a more than impressive result. As such, manager Neil Lennon insists that his prized asset is now worth £5 million – at least, per the Nottingham Post.
But the prospect of a young player moving to, arguably, the biggest club in the country provides enough pressure. The prospect of replacing a bonafide club legend, meanwhile, appears to border on an impossible task.
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