Johnny Kenny sends seven-word message to fans as Celtic agree deadline day deal
Johnny Kenny has taken to social media to send a message to Celtic fans after he moved on loan to League One side Bolton Wanderers.
Kenny joined Celtic from Sligo Rovers in 2022, but he has had to wait until this season for his chance in their first team.
The Republic of Ireland striker signed a new four-year contract with the Hoops last summer, and was trusted to lead the line at the start of this season, but struggled for form.
Celtic fans have torn into Kenny for his lacklustre performances this season, with a return of six goals in 22 appearances not enough to win them over in the last few months.
Tomas Cvancara joined Celtic last month to bolster Martin O’Neill‘s forward ranks, with Junior Adamu signed on Deadline Day, and so Kenny has been allowed to depart on loan for the rest of the campaign.
Kenny insists he is ‘looking forward’ to his Bolton spell
Kenny’s barren run in front of goal for the Hoops extended to 10 games as he stepped off the bench in latter stages of their 2-2 Europa League draw against Bologna on 22 January.
The 22-year-old was already competing with Kelechi Iheanacho and Daizen Maeda for minutes in attack, so Cvancara and Adamu’s respective arrivals mean the Parkhead board have allowed him to move on for now.
Kenny sealed a loan switch to League One side Bolton Wanderers on Deadline Day, and took to his Instagram story to send a message following his move.
He posted to say: “Looking forward to the next few months“, with the Trotters currently chasing automatic promotion to the Championship under Steven Schumacher.
What has Schumacher said about Kenny’s arrival?
Celtic fans may have slated Kenny’s performances, but he has shown some fine form in front of goal previously while out on loan at Shamrock Rovers, so clearly has the talent to score regularly.
He will join a Bolton side sat in third place in the English third tier, and may well find he is better suited to such a level, with lesser expectations than at a club like Celtic.
Wanderers manager Schumacher is clearly pleased to have him through the door for the final third of the season, as he said: “We’re delighted to have signed Johnny to continue a really strong month.
“He is a player who we rate very highly and is someone we identified last summer as someone who would really strengthen our attacking options.
“He has since played regularly and scored goals at a high level so will be a big addition for us. We didn’t think he would be available during this window but once we were made aware Celtic would allow him to leave on loan, we acted really quickly to get the deal done.“
The 22-year-old will hope to hit the heights expected of him in League One, so that he can return to Glasgow in the summer and stake a claim to start for Celtic going forward under their next manager.