FERGUS McCANN, the Celtic chairman, admitted yesterday that he has considered taking the Glasgow club into the English Premiership by purchasing Wimbledon.

Although such a takeover is unlikely, satellite television executives have held discussions on the desirability of pitting Celtic and Rangers against the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United in a revamped Premiership. Both Scottish clubs are huge attractions - an assessment confirmed by the fact that last November's Old Firm match brought BSkyB their second biggest audience of that entire month.

A Celtic official said last week: "I know the notion of the big Scottish clubs playing in England is an old chestnut, which most people greet with scepticism. But you really ought not to dismiss possibility. There is a feeling in football now that if television wants something, television will tend to get it."

Any Celtic move for Wimbledon would encounter strong opposition either side of the border and almost certainly require a legal challenge to succeed. "It is something that has been discussed. However, it has been taken no further," McCann said yesterday. "Celtic has the responsibility to its supporters and shareholders to consider all available options for the club to progress."

All of the associations involved - the FA, the Premier League, the Scottish FA and the Scottish Football League - have regulations which prohibit, the takeover of one club by another. The Premier, League's constitution even specifies that it will be contested by leading clubs "in England and Wales" and a spokesman yesterday described the idea as "a non starter".

The reasons cited for the rejection of Celtic's qualification to compete in the FA Premiership, have obvious implications for proposals, real or otherwise, to relocate Wimbledon in Dublin.

In particular, the Irish consortium backing the group, will have noted the statement attributed to a Premiership spokesman, that the competition is limited to clubs based in England and Wales.

A club official at Wimbledon said yesterday that he was unaware of the existence of any such rule while a supporter of the Dublin consortium said that it would not deflect them in their aim to bring Premiership football to the city.

McCann's comments form part of a wider argument which sees both Glasgow clubs reassessing their roles. Both want more regular European competition and have noted the huge amounts of money smaller English clubs like Wimbledon receive from TV each season.

Last week 15 Scottish clubs met to discuss league reconstruction. "The current football environment doesn't seem to suit anyone and change is definitely required," said McCann, who has long stated that 40 clubs is too many for a country the size of Scotland.

"Celtic would like to play in a strong Scottish League and efforts should be made to try and achieve this. It is disappointing that some people think changing the number of teams in divisions is an answer to all of Scottish football's problems. As I have said before we must look to what the supporter wants and start from there."

Meanwhile, Celtic kept up their championship - chase last night when they beat Dunfermline 2-0 at East End Park to reduce the gap on Rangers at the top of the Scottish Premier League to just six points.

Skipper Paul McStay guided them to victory as he ended an 11 month wait for a goal with a stunning breakthrough strike. Portuguese striker Jorge Cadete then maintained his own personal scoring streak with his 25th goal of the season to make it 15 in his last 10 games.