Farhad Moshiri may rue Everton’s failure to seal a deal for Jonjoe Kenny to join Burnley as the defender reportedly nears a Deadline Day loan move to Celtic.

What’s the word?

According to The Athletic, Kenny is set to seal a move to join Neil Lennon’s Hoops until the end of the season after talks between the Toffees and Clarets fell through.

The 23-year-old is keen to secure regular first-team football after being left in the Goodison Park wilderness by Carlo Ancelotti this season, and is not expected to be given a recall.

An agreement for Kenny to move to Turf Moor was believed to be close, though reports by the Daily Star claim no bidder was willing to match Everton’s valuation of the former England U21 international.

Kenny’s move to Celtic is not thought to feature an option for the Scottish Premiership giants to purchase the right-back at the end of the season, but may look to turn the deal permanent should he impress at Parkhead.

Burnley had been increasingly confident of securing Kenny’s services, but would appear to have baulked at the £7m fee Everton were said to have demanded to sell the defender.

A Brands blunder?

As Kenny will only have one year remaining on his £15,000-per-week contract come the end of the current campaign, Everton’s majority owner Moshiri would surely have preferred to see the Blues secure a permanent deal to offload the defender before Monday night’s deadline.

Instead, the Toffees now risk welcoming Kenny back to Goodison Park in the summer knowing they will struggle to secure the £7m fee Burnley refused to pay should he fail to establish himself at Celtic.

Ancelotti has only awarded the Everton product one start in the Premier League this term and has left the 23-year-old as an unused substitute in four of his last five games, after playing just three minutes since opening the 2-1 defeat at Newcastle on November 1.

Kenny spent last season on loan with FC Schalke 04 and started 31 of their 34 Bundesliga fixtures, only to find Seamus Coleman and centre-back Mason Holgate ahead of him in the pecking order upon his return to Merseyside.

Director of Football Brands, more than anyone, will now hope to see Kenny enjoy a more prolific run in the side once his move to Celtic has been signed off and ratified, with Lennon said to be a keen admirer of the full-back, knowing it will have been a blunder on his part for the Burnley deal to fall through.

AND in other news, an Everton gem with “unbelievable pace” must step up as £13.5m-rated flop nears exit...