Celtic ready to finalise capture of Morgan in £300,000 move
BUT ST MIRREN STAR WILL GO BACK ON LOAN TO SPFL CHAMPIONSHIP FRONTRUNNERS
CELTIC are poised to complete the £300,000 capture of St Mirren’s Lewis Morgan.
Sportsmail first revealed the Scottish champions’ interest in the 21-year-old in September — and they will complete the paperwork on a deal for the former Rangers academy kid when the SPFL offices re-open after the festive break today.
The winger notched his 13th goal of the campaign in the Paisley side’s draw against Morton at Cappielow yesterday.
Saints have secured a deal to loan him back until the end of the season as they chase promotion to the Premiership, while Celtic could also throw in fringe kid Mark Hill as part of the deal.
Buddies boss Jack Ross will be grateful about the prospect of having Morgan’s invention and drive for the rest of the season after the visitors just about held on for a point against their Renfrewshire rivals yesterday.
It was the teams’ third meeting of the campaign, but St Mirren’s tally of just two points from a possible nine could yet prove costly.
A header by home defender Thomas O’Ware cancelled out Morgan’s first-half opener, allowing Dundee United to cut the gap on Ross’s Championship leaders to three points with a game in hand.
‘Morton were good in the second half,’ admitted Ross, whose side had racked up seven wins in their previous eight league games. ‘They put us under pressure and I wasn’t sure how much of an impact the fact we played last Friday would have, while Morton’s game at the weekend was off.
‘Maybe we were a bit leggy after the first half, when our performance reflected where we think we are as a group.
‘So I’m a little frustrated we didn’t press home the advantage we had and, on the flipside, I’m disappointed we got until ten minutes to go before we conceded such a soft goal.’
Saints played most of the football early on, but their final ball left a lot to be desired, with too many high crosses aimed at the diminutive Danny Mullen.
Morton’s first real chance fell to Jai Quitongo after he outpaced Jack Baird to reach Derek Gaston’s kick-out, but his shot from 15 yards was high and wide.
The striker had cause to regret it when in-form Morgan put the visitors ahead. Ian McShane’s cross was meant for Mullen but it broke kindly for the Scotland Under-21 star, who drove the ball low past Gaston.
The home side’s frustration increased ten minutes later when Robert Thomson went down in the penalty area and received a yellow card for diving.
Michael Tidser was then presented with a chance to equalise when Gary Oliver rolled the ball into his path only to blaze over.
The game briefly threatened to boil over when Kyle Magennis was booked for aiming a kick at Tidser, while Morton’s Michael Doyle and Saints’ Stephen McGinn saw yellow for their part in the ensuing melee.
The hosts’ persistence paid off ten minutes from time. Quitongo might have equalised but for a vital block from Baird and, from Scott Tiffoney’s corner, O’Ware rose unchallenged to power a header beyond Craig Samson.
Referee Kevin Clancy then enraged home fans by rejecting Quitongo’s penalty claim when he went down under pressure from Baird.
‘I thought we had more than one strong shout for a penalty, but the referee sees it how he sees it,’ said Morton boss Jim Duffy.
‘I didn’t think he had his best match, but it’s not about criticising him. We were strong defensively and deserved a point.’