Football
Exclusive: Celtic, Rangers and Hibs Eye Move for Scotland Defender Scott McKenna
Scottish clubs Celtic, Rangers, and Hibernian are interested in signing Scotland international Scott McKenna from Spanish side Las Palmas. The experienced centre-back has a relegation release clause in his contract and is looking for a move back to Scotland or England. McKenna, who has been capped 39 times by Scotland, is keen to return after a difficult season in Spain alongside fellow Scot Ollie McBurnie. Both players would welcome the opportunity to play in Scotland after struggling in Spain.
Scotland v Hungary: Group A - UEFA EURO 2024 by Alex Caparros - UEFA | Getty Images
Celtic, Rangers and Hibernian have all expressed an interest in signing experienced Scotland international Scott McKenna, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
Our sources have learnt that the trio of clubs have made initial enquiries about recruiting McKenna who is set to leave Spanish side Las Palmas after relegation last season.
Another big contributing factor is that fellow Scot Oli McBurnie, who he joined the club with last summer, is also understood to be ready to leave the Canarias after a rocky debut season which saw the club finish 19th in the Spanish Primera Liga and were ultimately dumped to the second division.
Both McKenna and McBurnie saw their contracts automatically terminated on July 1st due to relegation clauses triggered by Las Palmas’ drop to the second tier — and it is understood to be highly unlikely that either player will enter discussions over fresh terms.
Las Palmas lost their last six league games of a season to forget in which McKenna and McBurnie struggled for form.
McKenna played 36 games for the club last season and was sent off in a match against Valladolid, while former Sheffield United striker McBurnie scored just five goals in a frustrating season in which he played 35 games.
INTERNATIONAL PEDIGREE
McKenna joined has been capped 39 times by Scotland and usually operates on the left side of defence, an area where Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers is looking for cover.
He started his career with Aberdeen and played 118 times for The Dons before spells with Ayr United, Alloa Athletic and then Nottingham Forest in the Premier League and Championship.
But after getting frozen out at Forest – and a brief loan spell with Copenhagen – he joined Las Palmas with pal McBurnie last August.
The Hoops have previously made enquiries about signing McKenna, but the player’s high wage demands were rumoured to be the reason any potential deal fell through.
But SportsBoom understands both McKenna and McBurnie would welcome the chance to play in Scotland after their Spanish experiment proved trickier than expected.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.