A report in The Sun claims that Eddie Howe has held face to face talks with Dermot Desmond and Dom McKay.
Five weeks on from Neil Lennon’s resignation it seems that Celtic are stepping up their activity to bring in a replacement.
Howe has been out of football since resigning from Bournemouth in August but is regarded as one of the most capable English managers in the business.
The 43-year-old has been linked with jobs at Crystal Palace, Newcastle and Sheffield United but it seems that Celtic are being proactive to get their man in place for a massive summer rebuild.
The Sun reports:
We told that Howe had reached out to his trusted contacts with connections to the club as he weighed up a shock move to Scottish football.
Now we can break the news that the former Bournemouth boss has held face-to-face discussions with Irish billionaire Desmond over the prospect of coming to Glasgow to succeed Neil Lennon.
Joining them for the hush-hush London summit was incoming Celtic chief executive Dominic McKay – three months before he formally arrives from Scottish Rugby.
It’s understood the 43-year-old – who worked a miracle at Bournemouth, taking them from near League Two oblivion to the Premier League over two spells – is now the top choice to take on Steven Gerrard’s title-winning Rangers next season.
Should Celtic offer the manager's job to Eddie Howe
Yes, absolutely. Howe is the perfect fit
No, what has he won?
The involvement of McKay rather than Peter Lawwell will be a relief to Celtic fans unimpressed by the recruitment record of the outgoing CEO.
Howe has been in charge of Bournemouth for two spells split by an 18 month stint in charge of Burnley.
On his return to the south coast he steered Bournemouth into the EPL where they remained for five seasons before relegation last term.