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Football

26th Jan 2017

Paddy McCourt could be playing in the Champions League next season

We might be getting ahead of ourselves, but...

Robert Redmond

This needs to happen.

Paddy McCourt is currently without a club, but surely not for long.

The Derry native is a supremely talented footballer, and a cult hero with almost every club he has played for.

McCourt joined Celtic from Derry City in 2008 and spent five years at the Scottish giants.

He wasn’t a regular starter, but was a firm fan favourite for his ability to dribble past opponents at will and score wondergoals.

The winger left Celtic for Barnsley in 2013, but he joined Brighton a year later before dropping down the divisions with Notts County and Luton Town.

McCourt signed for Glenavon in the Northern Irish Premier Division last July.

The 33-year-old signed a one-year deal with part-time team, but the contract was terminated by mutual consent before Christmas.

However, it doesn’t look like McCourt will be out of football for long.

The Northern Ireland international has been training with Dundalk and will be offered a permanent deal if he impresses manager Stephen Kenny, according to The Irish Independent.

The pair worked together at Derry City over a decade ago, and Kenny’s side is short of options out-wide after Daryl Horgan’s departure to Dundalk.

McCourt is said to have impressed in training with the Irish champions, who had a highly successful 2016, and will remain with the club for the next few weeks of pre-season.

Dundalk begin the defence of their league title on February 24, when they host Shamrock Rovers. Kenny’s side will also compete in the Champions League this season, and hope to go one further than last year, when they narrowly missed out on qualification for the group stages.

It would be great to see McCourt play a part.

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