Aberdeen defender Scott McKenna has submitted a transfer request amid continued interest in his services from down south according to various news outlets.

The 22-year-old defender has drawn links to English Championship duo Queen’s Park Rangers and Nottingham Forrest.

With his time at Pittodrie looking as good as up, the Dons will now be tasked with finding a replacement for him.

Here are three Scottish Premiership players that Derek McInnes’ side could look to replace him with…

Jason Kerr – St Johnstone

Kerr may well have featured in the Saints side that was on the receving end of the 7-0 hiding from Celtic at the weekend but don’t let that fool you.

The 22-year-old centre back is one of the best up and coming young defenders in Scotland and has arguably outgrown St Johnstone.

A move would make sense for all parties involved as Aberdeen would get a player with a nice upside, Kerr himself would be able to join a better team and St Johnstone could use money receieved to help them address the several problems they need to in the transfer market.

Kerr is however captain of the McDiarmid Park side and may not wish to leave because of this.

Jack Hendry – Celtic

With relations between Aberdeen and Celtic good, the Dons could well make a swoop for Jack Hendry whether that be on a loan or permanent basis.

Given the success Ryan Christie has had at Celtic after his spell with Aberdeen, could Hendry use a move to the Dons to similar effect?

Hendry could use move to Pittodrie to get his career back on track having had to settle for far less playing time than he would have liked since joining Celtic just over 18 months ago.

The former Dundee player could well look to use Kristoffer Ajer and Jozo Simunovic’s potential departures as a chance to get into the Celtic team though.

Stuart Findlay – Kilmarnock

Stuart Findlay played a big part in Kilmarnock’s success last season from the defensive side of things and would be another good option for the Dons to consider.

The 23-year-old has already been subject to interest from Oxford United this Summer but Killie boss Alessio Angelo has insisted that he wants to keep Findlay who he described as one of his top players at the club.

Findlay’s ability to play across the entire backline also makes him an interesting option. Findlay may see a move to the Dons as a bit of a sideways switch given he has had interest from down south which could scupper the reds chances of landing him.