Celtic kick off their 2024/25 Scottish Premiership campaign next week as they prepare to take on Kilmarnock in Glasgow on the opening day of the season.
The Hoops have had plenty of time to make additions to their squad during the summer transfer window, which officially opened for business last month, but have done little work to the group.
Brendan Rodgers has swooped to add two new goalkeepers to his options, with Kasper Schmeichel and Viljami Sinisalo brought in on permanent deals, after Joe Hart retired at the end of last term.
The Scottish giants are also reportedly set to complete a deal to sign Portuguese central midfielder Paulo Bernardo, after his loan spell at Parkhead last season.
Celtic have been linked with swoops for Royal Antwerp forward Michel-Ange Balikwisha and Burnley defender Dara O’Shea on top of their deal for Bernardo.
This suggests that there is plenty of work going on behind the scenes to get more deals over the line before the summer transfer window slams shut at the end of next month.
Further to this, the Bhoys are now reportedly interested in adding another defender to their ranks to compete for a spot in the team next season.
Celtic’s interest in Premier League starlet
According to BBC Sport’s Nick Mashiter, Celtic are eyeing up a swoop to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers left-back Hugo Bueno this summer.
The reporter claims that the Hoops are pushing to secure a deal for the Spanish dynamo to bolster their options at the back and provide Greg Taylor with serious competition for his place in the side.
He adds that the two clubs are now in discussions over a potential deal to take the full-back to Glasgow before the end of the window, but they have yet to reach an agreement.
Mashiter states that Celtic were also interested in signing Bueno on loan during the January transfer window earlier this year, as they failed to convince the Premier League side to part ways with him.
The Premiership champions are now hoping that it is second time lucky in their pursuit of the Spain U21 international as they look to make outfield additions before the clash with Kilmarnock next week.
However, it still remains to be seen whether or not Wolves are prepared to send the 21-year-old defender out on loan for the upcoming season, despite being the second-choice left-back to Rayan Ait-Nouri at the Molineux.
Celtic could land a dream partner for current winger Luis Palma down the left flank if they can get a deal for Bueno finalised in the coming weeks.
Luis Palma’s mixed success at Celtic
The Honduras international was signed from Greek side Aris FC last summer and endured a frustrating first season in Glasgow, as his early-campaign form derailed in the second half of the term.
Palma caught the eye with five goals and nine assists in his first 16 outings in the Premiership for the Hoops, which may have got supporters excited about what the rest of the season had in store for him.
Unfortunately, though, the left winger’s form fell off a cliff as he followed that up with two goals and zero assists in 12 appearances in the Scottish top-flight after the turn of the year.
His lack of natural athleticism let him down at times as the forward did not have the pace or power to sustain his form and provide a constant threat down the flank.
Despite that, Palma still ended the 2023/24 campaign with a respectable return of 16 direct goal contributions in 28 league appearances for the Hoops.
As you can see in the table above, the 24-year-old star does have the quality to provide a threat as a scorer and a creator of goals when at his best.
Cutting in on his favoured right foot from the left wing, Palma can fire in shots from distance to test opposition goalkeepers or put teasing deliveries in for his teammates to have efforts on goal.
It is now down to Rodgers and his coaching team to get the best out of Palma once again and the signing of Bueno could help to do just that.
Why Hugo Bueno could help Luis Palma
The 21-year-old dynamo could help the Honduras international on the wing due to his energetic and athletic displays from a left-back position.
Bueno likes to burst forward from a defensive position to drive his team up the pitch by using his power, speed, and carrying ability to be a progressive force for his side.
The £10k-per-week whiz, who Wolves sporting director Matt Hobbs hailed as “exciting”, ranked within the top 24% of full-backs in the Premier League for progressive carries per 90 (2.67) and the top 22% for successful take-ons per 90 (0.97) last season.
He also ranked within the top 8% for progressive carries per 90 (3.57) and the top 19% for successful take-ons per 90 (0.96) in the top-flight during the 2022/23 campaign for Wolves.
This suggests that he could drive Celtic up the pitch from a left-back position and provide athleticism and speed down the wing, which would take the pressure off Palma in that respect – freeing up the forward to focus on his talent in the final third.
As you can see in the table above, Bueno also has the potential to provide an attacking threat as a creative ace based on his form at youth level for Wolves.
He has yet to translate his ability to chip in with assists to first-team level but a move to the Premiership with Celtic in a dominant side could help him to do just that.
This could then cause opposition defences to be wary of his threat at the top end of the pitch and pay extra attention to him out wide, which could then open up more space for Palma to cut in and do damage on his right foot.
Therefore, Bueno could be an ideal signing to come in and play alongside the former Aris forward in the Premiership for the Hoops next season.
