McKenna Linked With Celtic Vacancy
Tuesday, 28th Oct 2025 12:28

Town boss Kieran McKenna is being linked with the vacant manager’s job at Celtic.

Brendan Rodgers made a shock departure from Parkhead yesterday, resigning with his side eight points behind Hearts at the top of the Scottish Premiership, with former incumbent Martin O’Neill quickly installed as interim manager with his one-time player Shaun Maloney as his assistant.

Another ex-Celtic boss, Ange Postecoglou, is currently favourite for a return to Glasgow at 7-4 with Bet365, but The Scotsman and other newspapers north of the border are reporting that McKenna has admirers in the Parkhead boardroom having previously been linked in the summer of 2023.

Those reports, and claims O’Neill has backed McKenna to be a potential candidate, have seen the 39-year-old move to second-favourite with most bookies, at 3-1 at time of writing.

McKenna, who was very speculatively linked with the Rangers job earlier in the month, is contracted to the Blues until the summer of 2028 and would cost Celtic a significant figure in compensation - as well as wages - should they firm up their reported interest.

Whether McKenna would then be tempted by a move to the Bhoys, a club with whom he has some affinity, remains to be seen.

The Town boss held talks with Chelsea, Manchester United and Brighton in the summer of 2024, coming very close to joining the Seagulls having previously been on the verge of moving to Crystal Palace during the previous season, but opted to remain with the Blues ahead of their Premier League campaign.

Following the Blues’ relegation, aside from vague links with Brentford, it was a relatively quiet summer regarding speculation on McKenna’s future.

In addition to McKenna and Postecoglou, Bodo/Glimt manager Kjetil Knutsen is also said to be among those interesting the Scottish Premiership champions.

Photo: Action Images

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tractorboybig added 12:30 - Oct 28 BIt of a step down to joke football
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mathiemagic added 12:35 - Oct 28 Jock Ball isn't the way forward that's for sure !!
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darkhorse28 added 12:41 - Oct 28

That there’s zero chance Celtic could afford him, and he’s mid table in the championship, tells a story about how poorly we’ve been managed off the field.

There aren’t many Premier League sides could afford him either, and he miles off that level.

He’s not our issue though, zero strategy and oversight above him, from anyone who’s vaguely elite.

He’ll wish he joined Brighton pretty soon.., a club who’s structure would have allowed him to focus on coaching, he’d probably have done very well.., he’s not someone to build a club around, and Ashton isn’t someone that will ever be good enough.., I’d shudder at Mark getting to replace McKenna .., what are Steve Bruce, Bryan Robson and Darren Moore doing these days.., we’d boing boing our way to 16th in the league.

Lots of better managers, with better records, who may or may not be better coaches, but are certainly better managers if he did go.

Sadly. There’s lots of room for us to improve, and to spend significantly less doing so. If he does leave.

That says everything. Maybe Celtic need Marks Baggies address book, that really would give us an opportunity to develop and move forwards.

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SamWhiteUK added 12:46 - Oct 28 There is absolutely no way that darkhorse pillock is a Town fan. I don't understand how he/she is still present on the site.
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Uhlenbeek added 12:51 - Oct 28 I think I you must be right SamWhite. I like to read different takes on our club, variety is the spice of life and all that, but what darkhorse has written is either a pisstake and sad attempt to get people angry or if he actually believes what he is written then its time to fetch the nurse.
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Dug added 12:53 - Oct 28 Up to McKenna if he gets a decent offer, it could be attractive to him, European football, likely to win silverware etc. Alex Ferguson moved from Aberdeen to Manchester Utd and had a glorious career, If I was in McKenna’s shoes I would certainly speak to Celtic,getting out of the Championship is one tough job.
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EuanTown added 12:57 - Oct 28 Panic Don't panic Panic Deep breaths Deep breath Relax
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cressi added 13:03 - Oct 28 I'm at a point I honestly don't care had enough of it the other summer what will be will be. like players managers come and go .
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jas0999 added 13:12 - Oct 28 Not bothered either way. Still think he’s a decent manager, but 12th in the championship, with just four wins from 12 in all competitions. All very average. That’s off the back of nine straight home defeats. Will Celtic want him based on that recent record? If he goes, fine. If he stays, fine.
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Gforce added 13:16 - Oct 28 Why on earth would he want to go to that tin pot league, where 80% of the teams are about the standard of Stevenage and Bradford City. Let's face it i could probably win the league with Celtic,although this season they seem to be as bad as the rest.
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Bazza8564 added 13:21 - Oct 28 Km is linked with EVERY vacancy. He won't go there, it's a massive club but his capacity to advance his career is much more limited than the journey he is on here. Get up, stay up, cash in for a bigger EPL job. Sorry but this is just the usual
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VanDusen added 13:23 - Oct 28

The way Scottish football is I think he'd be mad to do so - especially with the toxic pressure at an underperforming Old Firm team facing injections of funding from the Premier League into teams like Hearts.

But for us I'm not so worried. We will be a very attractive prospect for anyone to step into with parachute payments this and next season and a multi-talented squad that should still comfortably make the playoffs with the right management.

Gforce added 13:23 - Oct 28 On another note, where's LeeJames99,these days,i'm missing his regular team selections !
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Cervantes added 13:37 - Oct 28

The five year plan, when the Americans bought us, was to be an established Championship team this season. They expected us to be challenging for promotion, by next season. Our double promotion has skewed many fans' expectations and we have many new players to bed in and get working properly. We have a squad that is capable and much deeper than it's been in a very long while. Patience is needed while McKenna works out his best XI. I think the injuries to Szmodics and Akpom has forced our hand and we may see Núņez or Egeli in that role, maybe by happy accident we could stumble on an effective set up. The loss to Charlton was just ridiculous and we are, slowly, improving. If we can produce a threat down our right, on top of the threat down the left, we will very much harder to play against. We need a reality check and some patience. The results will come

AbujaBlue added 13:45 - Oct 28 Exactly Cervantes. Some on here forgot where we were, and are happy to let k Mck go because of our October position. So incredibly fickle. Luckily the majority of us are happy that more sensible heads prevail at the top of this club.
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Foreverdon_Blue added 13:53 - Oct 28 I started reading darkhorse's ramblings but gave up as I have never read such load of rubbish!
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Cakeman added 13:54 - Oct 28

Undoubtedly Kieran will be linked with lots of clubs.
However he still has to prove that he can live with the big clubs in big leagues.
One fleeting unsuccessful season in the Premier doesn’t qualify that.
He has done really well for us over the years but arguably he has his toughest task now.
Very early days but finishing outside of the top Six as a minimum will not be seen in a good light by a lot of supporters and possibly the owners.
Much still to prove.
PS I wish the pre match announcers would stop saying our manager is ‘super’ Kieran McKenna.
Results have not been ‘super’ for many months.

BurleysGloryDays added 14:08 - Oct 28 Timely reminder of how lucky we are to have him…
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Bluemike31 added 14:15 - Oct 28 I can't see them wanting him now tbh.
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itfc58 added 14:19 - Oct 28 I wish our pre match announcer would shut up completely ! He's embarrassing
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AlpineBlue added 14:21 - Oct 28

18 months ago I think we needed him desperately, but with the groundwork he's laid we will be able to getva very good manager in. I hope he stays, but with us being so hit and miss at the moment and the fanbase becoming frustrated it wouldn't be the end of the world if he left.
We are too predictable at the moment. Teams know what we're going to do, so even with the quality of players we have, we can't put teams to the knife.

baxterbasics added 14:49 - Oct 28 Seems unlikely he would go there but who knows. I hope not. darkhorse28 is a tedious bore, btw.
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virginblue added 14:50 - Oct 28 This is DHs worst take yet. How many of us had heard of McKenna when we appointed him, yet DH thinks we’d appoint a journeyman if KM moved on. He’s clearly unwell.
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poet added 15:01 - Oct 28 darkhorse28 posts are simply puerile. Any poster who dislikes McKenna is entitled to make comment, but the transparency of his comments makes them so obviously born out of a hatred for McKenna, and the football club, that it makes them disingenuous. Place them in the inconsequential bin, with all his or her other worthless drivel, and reject them.
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