Rangers exit mooted, Celtic ‘interest’ in 20-goal striker, Scotland star in demand - Scottish transfer news

£500k bid rejected

St Johnstone have rejected a bid of around £500,000 for striker Makenzie Kirk, according to reports. The former Hearts youngster has scored four goals in his first six games this season, courting interest from Peterborough United and Portsmouth, with the former already lodging a bid for the Northern Ireland youth international. Several scouts from the EFL were said to be in attendance at McDiarmid Park on Saturday as the Perthshire side fell to a 1-0 defeat to Motherwell in the Premier Sports Cup, with interest in Kirk’s services hotting up.

Despite being in the final year of his contract with St Johnstone, head coach Simo Valakari has claimed there is no rush to move him on for a fee this summer, saying last week: “He is a good player, he scores goals, and he is young. We knew there would be interest in him this summer. Rightly so. Nothing has changed. He’s our player, he is working hard, and we will see what happens. We are not desperate to sell. That’s how it is. We know how difficult it is to find strikers – it’s the hardest thing in football, scoring goals. At this moment, he’s our player.”

Scotland star in demand

Scotland international Max Johnston continues to be linked with a move away from Sturm Graz, with Hellas Verona the latest club to be credited with an interest in the defender. According to a report from the Daily Record, the 21-year-old is in high demand this summer, with clubs around the continent said to be lining up a move for the Scottish starlet. Atalanta, Lens, Nice, Southampton, Augsburg, AS Saint-Étienne, and Hamburg are all understood to have weighed up a transfer offer for the youngster, while Derby County have had two bids for Johnston rejected in the last fortnight.

The former Motherwell right-back is under contract until the summer of 2027 at the Merkur Arena, and has been a regular starter for the Austrian club, who were crowned Bundesliga champions for the second season in a row in May. However, he could be set for a departure, with Hellas Verona reportedly considering him as a replacement for Jackson Tchatchoua, who himself has been linked with a move this summer. Die Schwoazn are believed to be looking for a fee of around £3million.

Celtic ‘interested’ in 20-goal striker

Celtic are one of ‘several’ clubs claimed to be interested in signing striker David Strelec this summer, who could leave Slovan Bratislava after their failure to qualify for the Champions League. The 24-year-old, who scored 20 goals in the Super Liga last season, is believed to have been on head coach Brendan Rodgers’ radar since January, with reports even claiming the club had a bid of around £7.9million rejected for the Slovakian international on deadline day.

Two clubs have seen bids for the frontman rejected in recent months, though neither matched the valuation placed on Strelec’s head. “As far as I know, several clubs are still interested, including Celtic and Middlesbrough,” said the player’s father, Milan. “We both know they have had bad for him in the past. I am curious what will happen in the remaining few days of the deadline.” It is claimed that Slovan Bratislava are looking for a fee of around £9million.

Rangers exit possible

Rangers striker Cyriel Dessers could still depart Ibrox before the transfer window closes on September 1, after a report from Greek journalist Giannis Chorianopoulos at Sport Time claimed AEK Athens were still interested in striking a deal for the Nigerian. The 30-year-old striker was a key target for the Super League club, though they were unable to agree a fee with Rangers, who were believed to be looking for around £5million for Dessers.

According to Chorianopoulos, AEK Athens are ‘still open’ to a transfer, and still have ‘a lot to do’, though they must first move on another in order to make the move for the Rangers striker happen. Dessers, who missed Saturday’s 4-2 win over Alloa Athletic with injury, is expected to return to the Rangers squad quicker than anticipated, with head coach Russell Martin revealing the knee blow he picked up against Viktoria Plzen was not as bad as first thought.

Elsewhere, Lille boss Bruna Genesio have launched a scathing attack on the club’s hierarchy, slamming their work in the transfer window as ‘incomplete’. The Ligue 1 side were strongly linked with a move for Rangers frontman Hamza Igamane, with the French outfit said to have agreed personal terms with the striker back in July, but could not match the £15million valuation placed on the Morrocan. "The transfer window, for me, is incomplete,” said Genesio. “There are still two weeks left before the end, and we still need to recruit to have a stronger squad in terms of quantity to allow us to play on all three fronts. We need full-backs, a central defender, and a versatile striker."

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