Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers is keen to bolster his squad in the January transfer window and is now eyeing a versatile player at Parkhead, according to reports.

Celtic's form and transfer updates…

Since arriving back at Celtic in the summer, Hoops boss Rodgers finds himself in familiar territory as his side lead the way in the Scottish Premiership, sitting eight points ahead of arch-rivals Rangers, who have a game in hand that could narrow the gap down to five points.

Objectively, 11 victories and two draws from 13 league fixtures is as good a start as the Irish coach could've hoped for in the infancy of his second spell in charge; however, movement will be expected in January as he looks to keep the good times rolling north of the border.

Expectedly, incomings will filter through the door come the New Year as Celtic aim to add some additional squad depth. Cited by The Daily Record, Rodgers has signalled his intention to bring a striker to Parkhead, in light of Kyogo Furuhashi, Oh Hyeon-gyu and Daizen Maeda potentially being called up to represent their various national sides at the Asian Cup.

Talking about his recruitment plans, Rodgers stated: "We’ve given the Asian Cup a lot of thought. The likelihood is – if they’re fit – a lot of them will be there (in Qatar). That’s part of our planning. It doesn’t change our plans for January as it’s not a surprise. We knew it was there. We spoke about it in the summer leading into this window. We have that in hand and we know what our ideas are for that."

He then added: "It’s about strategy. You can either buy one or you can look at the loan market. It’s always about availability and what you can afford as well."

Now, one man who could potentially fill that void has been identified in a fresh report, which could give Celtic some flexibility in the final third moving into the second half of the campaign.

Celtic keen on Kanji Okunuki

According to Sky Sport Germany, Celtic are eyeing Nurnberg's Japanese star Kanji Okunuki and have scouted him intensely over the last few weeks.

Kanji Okunuki statistics in 2023/24 – all competitions (Transfermarkt)

Appearances

15

Goals

4

Assists

2

The report states that although Celtic are interested in the 24-year-old, no official offer has yet been submitted for the versatile man, who is capable of playing on the left flank, as an attacking midfielder or in a secondary striking role.

Making a key impact for Bundesliga 2 side Nurnberg this term, Okunuki has averaged around two shots alongside 1.5 clear dribbles per match in Germany's second tier (Okunuki statistics – WhoScored). Okunuki was called up to the senior Japan squad for the first time last month; however, he is yet to make his full debut for Hajime Moriyasu's side.

Performing around four possession recoveries in the opposing half per match, Okunuki is someone at the top of his game – his market value is at its highest ever – and would fit nicely into Celtic's high-octane pressing system, even if their play style is slightly different to Ange Postecoglou's intense brand of football.