McClaren says Celtic have moved for Juninho
Parkhead boss Martin O’Neill has been alerted to Juninho’s possible availability after the player found himself pushed to the sidelines by the arrival of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Mark Viduka.
On-loan striker Henri Camara has been the only new face at Celtic since the departures of Henrik Larsson, Johan Mjallby, Liam Miller and Jamie Smith, but Juninho would be the high-profile signing that the supporters are hoping for.
“While we’re actively not looking to sell Juninho, we can’t stop interest from other clubs,” McClaren said.
“Celtic have expressed an interest in Juninho. Martin O’Neill has spoken to Juninho, there’s no secret of that.
“Anything else that’s happening after that will certainly be kept behind closed doors.
“Juninho has been a fantastic player here. The first season, despite a bad injury, he came through and last season played a very, very important part in us winning our first trophy.”
Celtic play their first competitive game without Larsson tomorrow in their Bank of Scotland Premier League opener against Motherwell.
But midfielder Stephen Pearson believes O’Neill has found an excellent replacement in Camara.
Pearson, who will line up against his former team-mates at the weekend, said: “It’s my first pre-season but I only played with Henrik for six months but you miss him off the pitch as well as on the pitch.
“Obviously, we’ll all miss Henrik but hopefully Henri will come in and do a good job for us.
“It’s good to have a fresh face in at the minute and hopefully the manager will add to the squad over the next week or so.”
Pearson joined from Motherwell in January and is set for his first full season with his boyhood favourites.
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