Claim made on potentially 'difficult' Bolton Wanderers, Celtic deal | OneFootball

Bolton Wanderers may need to win promotion to the Championship to have a realistic chance of signing Johnny Kenny from Celtic permanently.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Johnny Kenny made his first Bolton Wanderers start since joining the League One club on loan from Celtic on Tuesday.

The Greater Manchester outfit are now eight points adrift of the automatic promotion spots following their 1-1 draw with Reading, which saw Mason Burstow's 96th-minute equaliser cancel out Jack Marriott's opener.

Unfortunately for Wanderers, the top-two sides, Cardiff City and Lincoln City, both earned victories on Tuesday, meaning that Steven Schumacher's men will likely have to earn promotion to the Championship via the play-offs rather than through the more straightforward route.

However, Bolton will be eager to defeat North West rivals Blackpool this Saturday, which could close the gap on Lincoln if the Imps fail to win at Mansfield Town.

Bolton Wanderers may have to win promotion to the Championship to sign Johnny Kenny from Celtic permanently

Kenny has scored six goals for Celtic this season and is vying to get his first Bolton goal sooner rather than later to bolster their League One promotion push.

Meanwhile, Football League World asked our Wanderers fan pundit, Liam O'Meara, if Schumacher's side should pursue a permanent deal for the striker this summer.

O'Meara told FLW: "I've been impressed with Johnny Kenny and I like the look of a forward too, with Sam Dalby. But I think it's well too early to say whether Bolton should permanently go in for him. I do like what I see.

"He missed a big chance very early on in the Reading game, which could have seen the game go very differently for us. Not that it was a bad point in the end, and I think we were more than value for it, potentially should have won.

"I think it's well too early to say because I just don't think he comes cheap after signing that contract in the summer at Celtic. I think in the summer, when we were linked with him, that was a very different conversation because his contract was, potentially, coming to an expiration a bit sooner than 2029.

"They're going to want decent money for him, particularly if he does well on loan at Bolton. Listening to Schumacher's comments on it during the week, I don't think we believe that the option is there to get him permanently. If we go up to the Championship, that might be a little bit different.

"There might be a little bit more investment in the playing squad, and then you have a look at the loan players and if any of them cross the threshold where you're interested in them permanently. But it seems like it would be quite a difficult deal to do."

Johnny Kenny future may hinge on Celtic managerial call

O'Meara is right to suggest that Bolton's chances of signing Kenny permanently will be greatly enhanced if Schumacher's men win promotion to the Championship.

The 22-year-old's contract at Celtic Park runs until 2029, meaning that the Scottish Premiership title challengers will want a relatively handsome transfer fee for his services.

Meanwhile, Kenny made eight top-flight starts for the Bhoys this season, before joining Wanderers on loan in search of more game time.

Whether the striker has a future at Celtic, though, may be determined in the summer, when the Glaswegian outfit appoint a new manager to replace interim boss Martin O'Neill.

Should the Bhoys' next manager decide that he doesn't view Kenny as a strong option, Bolton will be in a greater position to bring him to Greater Manchester permanently, provided they earn promotion to the Championship.