McGinn tipped to be success

SCOTT BROWN has hailed John McGinn as his natural successor at Celtic Park — as the Parkhead club prepare to launch a third bid for the Hibernian midfielder. The 23-year-old has already been the subject of two failed offers from the Scottish champions — the last of which is believed to have been £1.75million. McGinn, however, is thought to have told Hibernian officials he is only interested in moving to Celtic, thus shutting down the possibility of a bidding war with English

clubs. With the Easter Road club holding out for £4m, there is no sign of an immediate resolution. McGinn was part of the Hibs squad that touched down in the Faroe Islands last night and is fit to play in their Europa League qualifier tomorrow night against NSI Runavik after sitting out the first leg six days ago with a thigh strain. Should he line up at the Svangaskard Stadium, he would be cup-tied for the qualification rounds of the Champions League if he moved to Celtic — although he would still be able to play from the group phase onwards. But Brown, who also moved from Leith to Glasgow’s East End in 2007, is adamant Celtic are right to play the long game — with his club potentially landing someone worthy of his billing. Asked if McGinn could be his long-term replacement at club level, Brown replied: ‘He’s already done that with Scotland. When I was John’s age, I was a totally different player to him. ‘I just ran about smashing people. John’s got a lot more than I had at that age. I’ve matured into playing central midfield and sitting in front of the back four more. ‘John’s still got that energy to go from box to box. When he has that, he might as well use it to his full ability.’ Asked if he’d spoken to McGinn recently, Brown replied: ‘Yeah. I’ve just sent him a few wee jokes. You can imagine what. I’ll let you be the judge of that.’ Celtic made their opening £1.5m offer for the player two weeks ago but still appear to be some distance away from concluding the deal. Brendan Rodgers, though, insists he is understanding of the fact that not every transfer is signed off as quickly as he would like it. ‘You have to be patient, of course,’ said the Celtic manager, whose team leads 3-0 ahead of tonight’s second leg of their first Champions League qualifier against Alashkert. ‘Every coach and manager wants the player in tomorrow but it is not my expertise. I can only recommend players with our scouting team that we think can improve us. ‘Because that is what is important for us. We don’t need to overhaul and have that constant recycling of players.’ Winger Mikey Johnston has been linked with a loan move to Hibs and St Mirren. ‘Mikey is a big talent,’ added Rodgers. ‘There’s obviously interest from a number of clubs. He’s developing well but not at this point are we thinking of letting him out.’ Meanwhile, Celtic target Harry Wilson has joined Derby County on a seasonlong loan. Rodgers wanted the Liverpool wideman to add depth to his squad but the Welsh international has been snapped up by new Rams boss Frank Lampard.