HOWE: NEW MOVES IN PROGRESS

CELTIC are making progress in their pursuit of Eddie Howe as their new manager.

Talks have been ongoing since the Hoops’ interest in the former Bournemouth boss initially broke, as CQN reported.

Now, despite the football scene awash with rumours of Howe looking at possibilities elsewhere with Newcastle and Crystal Palace mentioned, it appears the Parkhead club are close to getting the appointment over the line.

Neil Lennon departed the club in February two days after the loss to Ross County in Dingwall, another disastrous result in a wretched campaign that promised so much in the summer, but came off the rails early into the season. Since then, the guessing game has been in full flow.

Hoops supremo Dermot Desmond held talks with Howe in London and since then both parties have been working to getting the deal set in motion.

CONCENTRATION…Eddie Howe waches from the touchline.

Howe is currently putting together his backroom team, according to a report in the Daily Mail.

A move for his former technical director Richard Hughes, the former Scotland international midfielder who is a keen Celtic admirer, is ongoing, but is NOT seen as a deal-breaker. The 43-year-old highly-rated coach views his close friend and confidante as the ideal man to front up player recruitment.

So far Celtic have resisted the temptation to attempt to rush through the move which may lead to a backfire down the line.

However, it is clear progress is being made in their bid to lure Howe and his backroom team to Glasgow.

In the meantime, caretaker gaffer John Kennedy is preparing his players for the match at Ibrox on Sunday.