What Martin O’Neill has told Dermot Desmond about Celtic moving for Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna | OneFootball

Martin O'Neill has supported Celtic's pursuit of Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna to majority shareholder Dermot Desmond.

Celtic interim boss Martin O’Neill has told majority shareholder Dermot Desmond to consider Ipswich Town’s Kieran McKenna for the top job at Parkhead.

The Scottish champions are on the lookout for a new boss after Brendan Rodgers quit on Monday night following issues with the hierarchy that have carried on from the summer transfer window.

In a surprising development, it was then revealed that O’Neill would be in charge of the Celtic team ahead of their upcoming fixtures, which includes a massive Glasgow derby against Rangers in the League Cup semi-final on Sunday.

Kieran McKenna emerges as a candidate for the Celtic vacancy

However, O’Neill has made it clear that he only expects to be in charge for the short-term, with the board on the lookout for a permanent manager.

It has been reported that McKenna is a target for Celtic, although it’s unclear whether the Northern Irishman would be open to making the move.

Further details have now been shared about Celtic’s interest in McKenna, as TalkSPORT has stated that O’Neill has given his backing to the Ipswich chief to Desmond.

The 73-year-old clearly has a close relationship with Desmond, evident by the fact he asked him to take over following Rodgers’ exit, and O’Neill has endorsed the possibility of bringing McKenna in.

Kieran McKenna would be a statement appointment for Celtic

Clearly, O’Neill is a figure that Desmond respects, so the fact he is pushing McKenna is significant.

Of course, that doesn’t mean he will move to Glasgow, and you would imagine there would be plenty of obstacles to overcome for that to happen.

Firstly, it will surely be difficult for Celtic to compete financially. Despite the wealth of the club, the board are reluctant to spend big on players, so questions will be asked about whether they would be willing to pay the money required to prise McKenna from Portman Road.

Then, there would be doubts over whether the project appeals to McKenna. Whilst Celtic are a massive club, Ipswich will expect to win promotion to the Premier League, and the chance of working in England’s top-flight may be the priority for McKenna, who has previously been on the radar of Man Utd, Chelsea and Brighton.

So, it will be interesting to see how this plays out, and even though Ipswich have had a disappointing start to the campaign, it would undoubtedly be a major blow if McKenna did leave for Celtic.