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(Credit: Imago, Celtic FC on YouTube)
Oliver Walton
Fri 8 August 2025 16:44, UK
Celtic fans have reacted badly to a new announcement about Johnny Kenny amid the club’s lack of another new striker signing this summer.
The Hoops got off to a slow start in the Scottish Premiership last weekend, with a late 1-0 win over St Mirren sealed through a deflected strike from Luke McCowan.
Brendan Rodgers is aiming to take his side to a fifth successive title triumph this season, but his centre-forward options are limited, with Adam Idah, recent capture Shin Yamada and Kenny to pick from as it stands.
Republic of Ireland international Idah was slammed by supporters for his poor showing on the opening day of the new campaign, as he missed two big chances, had just eight touches in the visitors’ penalty area, and was booked, on what was a bad day at the office for most Celtic players (Fotmob).
Idah’s ability to lead the line for the Glasgow giants has been called into question before, while Yamada and youngster Kenny are both unproven at such a level, and the club’s supporters have once again voiced their anger online after a new decision was made around the latter’s future.
22-year-old Kenny has been on Celtic’s books since a 2022 move from Sligo Rovers, and he impressed last season out on loan at Shamrock Rovers, netting 13 goals in 29 League of Ireland Premier Division games.
He returned to Parkhead in January to be included in Rodgers’ plans for the second-half of the last campaign, and marked his first start for the club with a goal against Aberdeen in May.
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Kenny is clearly seen as the future of the Bhoys’ forward line, and Celtic have moved to hand him a new long-term contract to tie him down at the club until 2029, with an announcement on their X page (8 August) reading: “(Celtic FC) is delighted to announce that Johnny Kenny has signed a new contract extension, committing his future to the club until at least 2029!”
Their announcement was met with some positivity, but mainly received an overawing response of annoyance and anger from Celtic supporters who want to see another new striker brought in rather than new deals handed out to someone like Kenny, who is unlikely to fire them to Premiership glory this season.
https://x.com/RyanGalbraith67/status/1953793898272129393https://x.com/billylowe67/status/1953793877715886582
https://x.com/1967lll/status/1953794951491240381
It is clear that neither Idah nor Kenny are fancied by many Bhoys fans, but whether the desire to sign another striker this summer extends to the Parkhead board and Rodgers remains to be seen.
Celtic have already signed a new centre-forward this summer in Yamada from Kawasaki Frontale, but the 25-year-old was left on the bench for the season opener after joining the club two weeks ago, and was hardly prolific in Japan with six strikes in 34 appearances in the 2025 campaign.
AppearancesGoalsAssists73293Idah’s Celtic career stats
Rodgers also has Callum Osmand at his disposal after a summer move from Fulham’s Under-21 side, yet he was not even in the matchday squad against St Mirren, so whether he is seen as a genuine first-team option yet is unclear.
Idah was mooted to make a shock move to Arsenal as recently as January after his brace against Aston Villa in the Champions League, but just six months on and it looks as if the Celtic board may have to get their chequebooks out to sign another new forward, all while dealing with the heat of handing a new contract to one of their rising stars.
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