Celtic’s hopes of signing Ali McCann handed major boost

PERTH, SCOTLAND - OCTOBER 04: Mohamed Elyounoussi of Celtic is put under pressure by Ali McCann of St Johnstone during the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between St. Johnstone and Celtic at McDiarmid Park on October 04, 2020 in Perth, Scotland. Football Stadiums around Europe remain empty due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in fixtures being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)
PERTH, SCOTLAND - OCTOBER 04: Mohamed Elyounoussi of Celtic is put under pressure by Ali McCann of St Johnstone during the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between St. Johnstone and Celtic at McDiarmid Park on October 04, 2020 in Perth, Scotland. Football Stadiums around Europe remain empty due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in fixtures being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

Ali McCann has emerged as one of the brightest prospects currently playing in Scotland over the past couple of years. And as a result, the fact that he has been linked with Celtic in recent times should not come as a surprise.

At the start of the campaign, not many would have predicted that St Johnstone would be the team to win the most trophies in Scottish football this season but that is exactly what has happened. And McCann has certainly played his part.

According to stats from Transfermarkt, he has made 43 appearances for St Johnstone across all competitions, scoring and assisting twice each on the way to an incredible Scottish League Cup and Scottish Cup double for the club.

As a result, he is expected to be a man in demand over the summer transfer window along with a number of other St Johnstone players. And manager Callum Davidson has admitted that a few of them could leave the club. As reported by The Courier, he said:

"“My players have performed at a very high level on big occasions which says a lot.“It will be hard for the club to hold on to them. That’s the business we’re in.“Hopefully we only lose one or two.“We need to make sure the ones who come through realise what these boys have done and meet those standards too.“I’ve always said that players will get chances of big moves if they perform in big games.“We beat Rangers in the quarter-final and there were the four matches at Hampden – we’ve only conceded one goal in those four.“I can’t fault them.”"

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Celtic have been linked with Ali McCann in recent months

Celtic have been linked with the St Johnstone midfielder over the past several months and it is not hard to see why.

The Hoops might need to bring in some reinforcements over the course of the summer and McCann could be the perfect candidate for their midfield. He is great at winning the ball and equally adept at carrying it up the pitch.

At 21 years of age, he might not be the finished article yet, but he definitely has the potential to be a very good player if he can continue to develop at this rate.

Now, it remains to be seen whether they can get a deal done for McCann. While St Johnstone might be open to the idea of a departure, they are not expected to let one of their brightest prospects leave easily.