Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that Scottish international Lewis Morgan is at the heart of a battle from clubs on both sides of the border in a bid to take the 22-year-old on loan for the rest of the season.
The wide midfielder has played 13 times for the Hoops this season but has found game time difficult to come by in recent weeks, his last league appearance coming before Christmas in December.
Discussing the future of Morgan, who ahs two caps for his country, Rodgers confirmed that both English League One side Sunderland and top flight rivals Aberdeen were both keen on his capture.
Speaking at his press conference, broadcast on Sky Sports News, he said: “There is an interest from Sunderland from Jack (Ross) and there’s one or two other club’s interested.
“(Are Aberdeen interested?) Yeah, there are a number of clubs that’s interested. Him and I have spoken at length about the next step for Lewis and we believe that getting regular game time is going to be absolutely important for him.
“That move will hopefully take place for him and it’s just not about finding a club, because there are some good clubs in, but finding the club for him.”
Opinion
Morgan would probably be a great player for any other club in Scotland bar Celtic or Rangers and so he should have no trouble in finding a move away from Parkhead this month. The question is does he stay in the Premiership or get experience elsewhere? Sunderland might be a big club historically but playing in League One is some way below the quality that the top flight in Scotland has to offer and so he really should be thinking about cutting his teeth at the likes of Aberdeen if he wants to forge a career with the Bhoys. Proving he can perform week in, week out in the Premiership throws up the question of whether Rodgers should be using him more often. Impressing in England’s third tier just does not have the same impact, which is why Jack Ross should find himself disappointed when it comes to where Morgan ends up. Still, the player himself might fancy a move to England and if that is the case then Rodgers should appreciate that. It would not be the worst move in the world, with Sunderland challenging at the top of the table and it would no doubt get more clubs noticing his performances in case Celtic fancied selling him any time soon.