Celtic assistant John Kennedy set to miss out on Midtjylland job as Danish club accelerate managerial hunt

Celtic assistant manager John Kennedy looks set to miss out on the vacant FC Midtjylland managerial post after the Danish club closed in on their No.1 target.

The well-respected Hoops coach, who has filled various roles within Parkhead since 2010, emerged as a strong candidate to replace Bo Henriksen after he was relieved of his duties in July.

GlasgowWorld stated earlier this month the 39-year-old was in line to become the first ever foreign head coach of the Superliga outfit - but Midtjylland have now shifted their focus elsewhere.

Representatives from the club reportedly travelled to Spain over the weekend to hold talks with current Barcelona academy director Albert Capellas.

The former Denmark Under-21 boss has spent the majority of his coaching career as assistant manager across a number of clubs, including Vitesse Arnhem, Brondby, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Borussia Dortmund.

Capellas also had a brief spell in charge of Barcelona’s B team last year and could now take over at Midtjylland who currently sit eighth in the table after winning only one of their opening six domestic games.

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou previously stated Kennedy remains a “valuable asset” to the club but he wouldn’t stand in the former defender’s way should he wish to pursue a manager’s post.

The Australian said: “He’s no different to anyone else at this football club. If people identify him as someone who can help their organisation, then it’s up to the individuals to make those decisions.

“John is a really important part of what we do here, he’s an important part of my set-up, he leads a lot of the areas with respect to our football, so he’s a valuable asset to this club.”