EXCLUSIVE: Celtic ready to rescue Villa striker from loan struggles

Celtic are considering a bid to bring out-of-favour Aston Villa striker Scott Hogan to Parkhead this month, sources have told TEAMtalk.

Hogan is currently on loan at Stoke, but he has failed to impress and is not in the plans of new boss Michael O’Neill.

And with Stoke willing to let the player move elsewhere, Celtic are emerging as an option for the 27-year-old as Neil Lennon looks at options to bolster his squad.

The Bhoys lost forward Scott Sinclair this week, who joined Preston on a two-and-a-half-year deal and are looking to increase their options in attack.

Villa, who themselves are looking for a new striker, are ready to let Republic of Ireland international Hogan leave and they would not stand in the way of a loan move to Glasgow.

Villa, meanwhile, appear to be out of the running to sign AC Milan striker Krzystof Piatek from AC Milan, with Tottenham said to be leading the charge for the €35m-rated star.

However, World Cup winner Olivier Giroud remains an option and Villa boss Dean Smith admitted he was hopeful of adding a new striker before Sunday’s game with Manchester City.

“All our options are open in terms of centre-forwards,” said Smith. “We’re obviously short in the forward area. It’s top priority. I’d like to try and get one in before Sunday (the Premier League game at home to Manchester City) if we could.”