Shamrock Rovers boss Stephen Bradley has come out with some high praise for Celtic loanee Johnny Kenny.

The striker has been with the Dublin side since the beginning of last year but in his first season with the club, he wasn’t entirely convincing.

Kenny scored six goals and assisted four in 33 appearances as his side secured the Irish title. Although these numbers don’t capture the eye’s attention, they were sufficient for Rovers to keep him on loan for another year.

A few months into the said second spell, the 20-year-old has kicked on. Already, Kenny has surpassed his goal tally from last campaign having bagged seven in 19 games.

The current season hasn’t been the best for his team, but the centre-forward has excelled, and his boss Bradley is delighted with his progress. “Last year he looked a bit lost in his head”, he said (The Irish Independent via RecordSport).

“Could he have played more games? Yes, but that’s down to me. This year he’s been a different animal, in training, his mentality around the place and on the pitch, when he’s like he is at the moment you wouldn’t like to play against him, he has a bit of everything.”

Due to return to Celtic at the end of the calendar year, the Irish youth international is yet to make a senior first-team appearance for the Hoops.

He played in a pre-season friendly in Austria in 2022 but other than that, he hasn’t done much since joining the champions from Sligo as an 18-year-old.

If Kenny maintains his current scoring rate, however, that could all change. Bradley even joked he would tie him down in Dublin to keep him with Rovers. “He’s here, I will be chaining him to the gates”, he quipped.

Contracted with the Scottish champions until 2025, any permanent exit from Celtic for Kenny seems unlikely at the minute.

He has caught the eye so far this season but to get an opportunity in Brendan Rodgers’ first-team, he will need to keep up his current form and some.