Celtic is on the verge of securing a £3.4million deal for Portuguese midfielder Paulo Bernardo, who underwent a medical examination on Tuesday night. The 22-year-old is set to join Brendan Rodgers’ squad before Sunday’s Premiership flag day against Kilmarnock.

Meanwhile, Adam Idah’s on-off move to Parkhead has taken a fresh twist after the striker was disciplined by Norwich and left out of their friendly with Hoffenheim following his failure to catch the team flight to Austria over the weekend.

While Celtic edge closer to a breakthrough on Bernardo and Idah, they face frustration in their pursuit of Wolves left-back Hugo Bueno. The Premier League side has informed Mail Sport that they have no current plans to send the Spaniard out on loan.

Bernardo’s protracted transfer saga will finally come to an end when the midfielder becomes the club’s first outfield signing of the summer after two weeks of haggling over cash. He initially joined Celtic on a one-year loan last summer, with a £6m option to buy. However, the club renegotiated a fee of £3.4m with a 30% sell-on clause.

Portuguese midfielder Bernardo was an impressive performer during last season’s loan spell

Celtic also want left back Hugo Bueno but Wolves won’t send him out on loan

Bernardo now joins goalkeepers Kasper Schmeichel and Viljami Sinisalo as the third signing of the summer. However, Celtic may still face frustration in their pursuit of Bueno, despite having already made an unsuccessful loan bid in January.

Idah, on the other hand, looks more likely to seal a move after Norwich boss Johannes Hoff Thorup confirmed disciplinary action had been taken against the Irish international. Celtic have had a £4.5m offer turned down, with Fiorentina and Hellas Verona also interested.

Idah, who was on loan at Celtic last season, is still part of the squad’s WhatsApp group, and captain Callum McGregor believes the £8m striker is wanting to return.

Addressing growing frustration among fans at the pace of the transfer activity, McGregor predicted more additions to the squad before another tilt at the Champions League.

‘We have to have a little bit of patience and trust the guys that are in those positions to do the job,’ he said.

The Parkhead side could be making a breakthrough in their pursuit of Idah

Celtic captain Callum McGregor believes the club will bring in new recruits soon

McGregor and boss Brendan Rodgers during club’s recent tour of the USA

Reflecting on friendly wins over Manchester City and Chelsea in the US, McGregor said: ‘The games showed everybody that we were really slick and everybody knew their job. It is now about trying to keep as much of that together as possible and adding the right quality.’

Meanwhile, McGregor believes Celtic can’t afford to let their own preparations be affected by turmoil at Rangers, with the Ibrox club having to decant to Hampden at the start of the season and sell players in order to buy.

‘I’ve been in this spot long enough to know you have to concentrate on yourself,’ he said. ‘The minute you lift your head and look elsewhere, that’s when it goes wrong. We don’t look at what anyone else is doing.’

* Callum McGregor was speaking at the William Hill SPFL Season 2024-25 launch. William Hill are the proud sponsors of all four SPFL league competitions.