Celtic have been credited with an interest in signing Johnny Kenny of Sligo Rovers and Drogheda’s Killian Phillips.
The transfer window closed on Tuesday at midnight but recruitment is a year long process with Liam Scales signing last week from Shamrock Rovers.
Celtic’s biggest issue is finding a platform for emerging talents to develop into first team players.
Barry Coffey was a highly rated prospect when he joined Celtic in the summer of 2018, this year he has been out on loan at Cliftonville and Cork City with barely a run of games to his name.
While Jeremie Frimpong kicked on instantly from the 2019 batch it is long odds that Luca Connell, Jonathan Afolabi or Lee O’Connor will see the light of the Celtic first team.
Kenny and Phillips seem to be emerging talents in the League of Ireland with the Irish Independent reporting:
Celtic are keeping tabs on Sligo Rovers’ teenage striker Johnny Kenny with a view to making a move for the front man next year.
The Scottish club will have the 18-year-old watched in Rovers’ league game away to Drogheda United on Friday as they mull over another dip into the League of Ireland market after the €600,000 capture of Liam Scales from Shamrock Rovers last week.
Kenny is viewed as more of a long-term prospect with the striker only making his senior debut at the beginning of this season, completing his Leaving Cert in tandem with playing for his local club.
He signed his first professional contract in January, a two-year deal which expires at the end of next season.
Celtic are understood to have been monitoring his progress across the year, but a move before the transfer window closed earlier this week was never really on the cards as the priority was bringing in recruits that are ready for the first team at this moment. However, a move for Kenny in January may transpire if he continues to impress.
Celtic have another reason to take in Friday’s match as they are also tracking the development of Drogheda midfielder Killian Phillips.
The 19-year-old has also made his senior breakthrough this term and is attracting attention from overseas, although the anticipation is that his future will be in central defence.