McKENNA CLOSING IN ON SWITCH TO FOREST
ABERDEEN defender Scott McKenna was last night heading south to seal a £3million-plus switch to English Championship side Nottingham Forest. The Scotland international was left out of the Dons squad for yesterday’s surprise 3-0 Premiership home defeat to Motherwell. That development came after the Pittodrie club had confirmed a ‘significant’ offer — believed to be £3m up front plus add-ons — had been tabled for the powerful 23-year-old. Last night, Dons boss Derek McInnes praised McKenna and backed him to be a smash hit down south. He said: ‘I’m pretty sure they are close to a fee being agreed and Scott is on his way down
south. I would be surprised if it fell through.’
In the past, Aberdeen have rejected bids for McKenna from Celtic, Aston Villa, Hull City and Swansea City.
Now the 16-times capped centrehalf, who skippered his nation against Mexico in the Azteca Stadium in June 2018, is on the verge of clinching a move to the City Ground.
Nottingham Forest have started the season with two 2-0 defeats, by Queens Park Rangers and Cardiff, and manager Sabri Lamouchi is looking for defensive recruits with former Rangers defender Joe Worrall a target for English Premier League side Burnley.
‘Scott was always going to move at some point,’ said McInnes. ‘I would prefer to speak more when it’s concluded but he’s a player with 16 caps and, at the age of 23, he’s only going to improve.
‘Scott is not just a good player. He’s a brilliant person, a great boy and I’ve enjoyed working with him. ‘It’s always a heavy heart when you lose good ones. But he’s one who is deserving of another opportunity to push on. ‘Wherever he ends up, he will have a good career as he treats everything properly — whether it’s a passing drill or recovery after games. ‘Everything he does is 100 per cent and there is no doubt we will miss that player and person. We could have done with him today.’ McInnes will not be allowed to use the fee for McKenna (below) to bolster his defensive options ahead of the transfer window closing next month. ‘Will I see the cash? No,’ confirmed the Dons boss. ‘We made some succession planning with Ross McCrorie and Tommie Hoban coming in on a short-term deal (until January). ‘We were allowed to bring in Tommie and Ross to deal with (the possibility of) McKenna leaving. ‘We weren’t encouraging bids for Scott but we expected bids to come in as soon as the new English Championship season started.’