Celtic have not made a signing since the summer transfer window officially opened for business in the middle of last month but that could be about to change in the coming days or weeks.
Brendan Rodgers is no stranger to utilising the loan market to his advantage during his career as a manager and did so to great effect last season with the Hoops.
Paulo Bernardo and Adam Idah were brought in on loan from Benfica and Norwich City respectively and both played a key role on the pitch, which was illustrated when they combined for the winning goal in the SFA Cup final at Hampden Park in May.
The Scottish giants are now reportedly close to landing a deal to bring one of them back to Parkhead on a permanent basis for the 2024/25 campaign and beyond.
Celtic closing in on £6m agreement
According to Football Insider, the Hoops are close to agreeing a transfer to sign Bernardo from Benfica after his promising loan stint in Glasgow last term.
The report claims that talks are advancing between the two clubs and that there is a confidence from Celtic's end that they can get a move over the line before the end of the window.
It also states that Rodgers gave the board the green light to pursue a permanent swoop for the Portugal U21 international and that a fee of £6m is likely to be the figure agreed for the talented midfielder.
This comes shortly after it was reported that the Hoops had entered into talks with Benfica to attempt to sign the midfielder for £4m, which suggests that they have now compromised on that and moved closer to the Liga Portugal side's valuation.
Bernardo could now become Youri Tielemans 2.0 for Rodgers, who managed the Belgian magician during their time together at Leicester City.
Why Paulo Bernardo could be Youri Tielemans 2.0
The Foxes had snapped the Monaco ace up on loan for the second half of the 2018/19 campaign in January 2019, a month before they appointed the Northern Irishman from Parkhead.
Tielemans produced three goals and four assists in 13 Premier League starts during that loan stint before Leicester secured him on a permanent basis in the summer of 2019.
The Belgium international went on to rack up 28 goals and 25 assists in 184 appearances in all competitions for Rodgers, including a winning goal in the 2021 FA Cup final against Chelsea.
Bernardo, who was hailed as a "baller" by U23 scout Antonio Mango, could now be Tielemans 2.0 for the manager as another talented midfielder who can chip in with goals and assists signed on a permanent deal after a promising loan spell.
Appearances
22
Starts
11
Goals
3
Assists
3
Big chances created
4
Pass accuracy
83%
As you can see in the table above, the Portuguese whiz's form in the Scottish Premiership was not too dissimilar to Tielemans' form in the Premier League during his first stint at the King Power, with six goal contributions in 11 starts compared to seven in 13.
Both players are central midfielders who look to push forward to make an impact at the top end of the pitch as scorers and creators of goals, as shown by their respective statistics.
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Therefore, Rodgers could repeat the blinder he played with the Belgian star by signing Bernardo permanently and helping him to become a consistent contributor from midfield over the years to come at Parkhead.