Republic of Ireland under-21 international James McCarthy will snub a move to England if Celtic come calling, according to his representative.
The Scottish PFA’s Young Player of the Year is one of the hottest properties in British football at the moment and Hamilton Academical have already knocked back a bid from Portsmouth, reportedly in the region of €550,000.
That is expected to be the first of a number of offers for the midfielder this summer but sports agent, Willie McKay, claims the youngster is hoping Celtic join the queue.
"James knows there is interest from England, but he's made it clear he would love to play for Celtic," McKay told the Daily Record. "I'm sure they would be prepared to pay what would be a lot of money for a teenager."
Liverpool were reported to have inquired about the teenager last year but Accies have confirmed the only official bid came from Portsmouth.
McCarthy has been a client of Braveheart Promotions, a company owned by Barry Hughes, but is being represented by McKay while the former fighter turned sports agent is on bail awaiting trial for attempted murder.
Under the terms of Hughes’s bail, he was bound to observe a curfew between 7pm and 7am, which made travelling to meet clubs interested in McCarthy, said to include Cardiff City and Tottenham Hotspur, difficult.
