Celtic are believed to be lining up an offer for Josh Maja.
According to a report in The Sun the 15-goal Sunderland striker is an end of season target with only a token Development Fee required.
Maja is the leading goalscorer as Jack Ross attempts to take Sunderland back to The Championship but surprised Sunderland by turning down a new contract.
Celtic;’s Head of Recruitment Lee Congerton was at Sunderland when Maja was signed from Fulham although he also had stints with Crystal Palace and Manchester City.
Despite his elevation to the Sunderland first team Maja is still on the original contract that he signed as a 17-year-old. This season he has scored 14 times in 21 League One appearances.
Ross thought that he had got the Londoner onto a new contract at the start of this month but was shocked when the deal was rejected by the players agent.
Half a dozen EPL clubs have been linked with the 20-year-old but with a faster route to first team football and the potential of playing in the Champions League a ‘Dembele deal’ is bound to be of interest.
Celtic would only have to pay a fee based on UEFA regulations due to the cross-border nature of a move.