Celtic legend opens up on 'long' manager process as Rangers told transfer would have had to be a record fee

An intriguing Scottish Premiership title race is warming up nicely and Rangers could have the opportunity to hit the summit with a victory over Aberdeen at Ibrox this evening.

Philippe Clement's side have made steady inroads on league leaders Celtic points tally, with Brendan Rodgers' Hoops slipping to a 1-1 draw at Pittodrie on Saturday. The Gers seized the initiative by running out comfortable 3-0 winners at home to Livingston to ensure the gap is now just three points. In the meantime, GlasgowWorld has rounded up all the latest news surrounding both clubs.

Celtic legend opens up on 'long' Republic of Ireland manager process

Neil Lennon has admitted he is still in the dark over whether he has been selected as the man to take over as the Republic of Ireland head coach after throwing his hat in the ring to replace Stephen Kenny.

The Celtic legend, who has been out of work since leaving Cypriot side Omonia Nicosia in October 2022, held talks with the FAI last week over the vacancy, with a decision yet to be made over Kenny's successor. It is understood that England under-21 manager Lee Carsley remains in the running to land the position, but former Northern Ireland midfielder Lennon is also believed to be keen to test his managerial credentials at international level.

The FAI intend to make an appointment before next month's friendly doubler-header with Belgium and Switzerland at the Aviva Stadium, but 52-year-old Lennon confirmed the process has been dragging on. He told PLZ Soccer: "You've got to respect the process. They've been diligent and stringent in their approach to this, and they've been very professional. When they've decided to make the call, we'll know. It has been a long process but one that you have to respect."

Hearts chief confirms no January Lawrence Shankland Rangers bid

Hearts chief executive Andrew McKinlay reckons it would have taken more than £4.4million for Hearts to allow hitman Lawrence Shankland to depart the club in the January transfer window.

The Jambos skipper was heavily linked with a move to boyhood heroes Rangers last month, but McKinlay confirmed there were no offers submitted for the Scottish Premiership's current top scorer.

Shankland, who has now entered the final 18 months of his contract at Tynecastle, has failed to agree a new long-term deal with the Gorgie club so far after two lucrative offers were tabled. And while CEO McKinlay confessed recent talks had ended in a stalemate, he insists any offer would've had to have smashed the Scottish transfer record as Hearts continue to chase down a £5m European windfall by finishing in third spot.

He said: "There were some numbers - and those numbers, without going into detail, were predicated on what happens if we sell Lawrence and we don’t get group-stage football. And we know exactly what that’s worth, so it had to be in that ballpark and upward of that ballpark for it to make any sense. That’s not to say we wouldn’t get third without Lawrence - but it certainly would have been a massive high risk.

"People forget that the Scottish transfer record sits at £4.4m between Scottish clubs and that was Scott Brown a good few years ago. And it would have to be in excess of something like that. Were we really expecting the Scottish transfer record to be broken? I don’t think so - and there was never any hint that it was going to be.

"I can only speak personally, but I didn’t believe we would get a bid from anyone. We’re delighted and as we said from day one, we wanted to keep Lawrence. And we’ve managed to achieve that. It’s great that we’ve got him for at least another 18 months and we’ll see how things pan out."