Lennon: I am interested in signing Boyd

Celtic manager confirms former Rangers striker could be heading across Glasgow

Feathers may well fly if Celtic manager is successful in signing former Rangers striker Kris Boyd (Reuters)

Neil Lennon, the Celtic manager, has got fans of both Old Firm clubs talking after he refused to rule out a bid for former Rangers striker Kris Boyd.

The Scottish Premier League's all-time top scorer this week terminated his contract with Turkish club Eskisehirspor following a dispute over unpaid wages and is now a free agent.

Ally McCoist, the Rangers manager, appeared lukewarm about the possibility of the 28-year-old player returning to the club, while earlier in the week a source at Celtic Park denied interest in the player. However, ahead of tomorrow's Scottish Premier League home game with Kilmarnock,Lennon addressed the question of Boyd's availability by admitting the player's background would not sway him if he was to consider making a bid.

Lennon, who denied he had made an official approach for Dundee United's Scott Allan, said: "He is a proven goalscorer. I don't know how much football he has played of late but he is a player with a great record and any player like that would interest me.

"You are taking hypothetically here and are starting to speculate already, but regards to that question [would it be a problem that Boyd had played for Rangers?] no, I can't see it being a problem. But again, I don't want to talk about players coming and going until January."

While trying not to get involved in transfer speculation, Lennon let his guard slip for a moment when asked about reports that CSKA Moscow have entered the race for Maritimo's Baba Diawara. The Irishman has watched the Senegalese striker in recent weeks but is aware of what will happen if there are other clubs interested.

He said: "It might turn it into a bidding war – but I never said I was in for Diawara. He is just a player who has come to our attention over the course of six to eight months and we have watched him a few times."

Lennon revealed left-back Emilio Izaguirre is ready to return to first-team action after recovering fully from a broken ankle sustained against Aberdeen in August. The Celtic manager insisted that even if the Honduran does not feature against the Ayrshire side, he will still consider him for the Old Firm game at Celtic Park next Wednesday.

"He had 90 minutes in a bounce game on Tuesday and came through it fine," said Lennon. "He looks okay physically and he looked happy today. He will be in contention for the weekend. Emilio is a naturally fit boy anyway. He has had a traumatic injury but we are not going to pressure him.

"He is desperate to play. Obviously we will gauge that over the next couple of days but he will be in the squad for the weekend."

Lennon confirmed that Daniel Majstorovic will be out for up to six weeks after undergoing surgery on the fractured cheekbone he sustained in the 2-0 win against St Johnstone on Sunday. The Sweden defender had to go off following a challenge on David Robertson.