Scott McKenna was disappointed Aberdeen turned down transfer request

Scott McKenna has confirmed his transfer request from earlier this season no longer stands but admits he was disappointed it was not granted at the time.

Scott McKenna says he just wants to do his best for Aberdeen and Scotland. Picture: Craig Williamson/SNS

The Aberdeen centre-half, who has just turned 23, took the extreme step of submitting the request after a series of bids for his services from English clubs were turned down by the Pittodrie outfit.

Nottingham Forest and Queen’s Park Rangers are the latest sides to be rebuffed by Aberdeen, with Aston Villa having been frustrated a year earlier having made a bid of around £7million. Celtic were also tracking him.

McKenna decided to take things into his own hands before a crucial Europa League qualifying clash with Croatian side Rijeka in August and with the transfer window about to close.

“It was a very hard decision,” he recalled. “Aberdeen gave me my chance and have been absolutely brilliant with me but I had been building up for that for a year in the hope of a move.

“The summer was probably the worst for me,” he added. “There was maybe a bit of expectancy for it to happen whereas before it just kind of happened – whatever the decision was, you just put your head down and got on with it.

“When you have been working for the full year, building up to that point that you thought was going to be the time, there was that wee bit of disappointment.

“But it can’t linger for too long. The window closed. We were in Croatia and we had a game an hour or two later. There was no time for me to dwell on things. As frustrating as it can be, there is absolutely nothing I can do about it, apart from trying to play well.”

McKenna is conscious the speculation will likely start all over again in the weeks ahead, as the transfer window prepares to open once more. He is currently contracted until the summer of 2023 and hopes to win his 16th international cap against Cyprus on Saturday.

“As soon as every window closes, the next six months is always big,” he said.

“It’s a big six months and the closer you get to the window, all you hear is people saying ‘you need to play well the next five or six games’.

“Your future could depend on it. You become used to it. I’ve heard it so many times now.

“I just want to do as well as I can in every single game I play in, whether that’s for Scotland or Aberdeen.”