Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has distanced himself from the negotiations taking place between the club and Hibernian for the signature of midfielder John McGinn, admitting it is a ‘difficult’ deal to get over the line.
Having clearly identified him as a player he wants to see in the Hoops, Rodgers is now awaiting the two sides reaching an agreement on a transfer and has refused to rule out a third bid for the player.
As quoted by The Daily Record, the Celtic Park boss said of returning for the 23-year-old:
I am distant from that, so time will tell.
That’s something for the clubs to organise. I coach the team, I manage the team. We target players but ultimately any agreements have to be between the two clubs.
We respect John is still very much a Hibs player and unless there’s an agreement… like I say, it’s going to be a difficult one. That’s really between the clubs.
McGinn missed Hibs’ UEFA Europa League qualifier on Thursday night, with Neil Lennon claiming the player was ‘not mentally fit’ to play for the first team at Easter Road, given the speculation.
It seems increasingly likely he is on his way to Glasgow, but Celtic are clearly willing to play the long game when it comes to signing him, knowing that he has just a year left on his contract and negotiations can begin on a free transfer in January.
Rodgers’ non-committal answer is all part of that.
It’ll be interesting to see if the situation is now enough of a pressure on Hibernian that a third bid will do the trick when it comes to landing the player.
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