VIRGIL VAN DIJK could earn Celtic as much as £5million next month after Southampton confirmed there was no buy-out clause inserted into his contract.

We understand that the English south coast club have put a take it or leave it £50m asking price on the defender who has become the most sought-after player in English football just weeks aways from the January transfer window opening, and they expect bids to come in for the former Parkhead favourite.

Peter Lawwell, the Celtic chief executive, inserted a ten per cent sell-on clause into Van Dijk's current contract and while there was a suggestion that the Dutchman could be bought for as little as £25m - that was flatly denied by Southampton manager Claude Puel this week.

Liverpool were in the running but are believed to be put off by such a high price tag; however, this amount of money will not deter Chelsea, Manchester City and maybe even Arsenal.

It is now case of when, not if, the 25-year-old Van Dijk becomes the world's most expensive defender - which will mean Celtic in total making £18m from a player they bought for £2.6m from Groningen in the summer of 2013.

Southampton are now out of the Europa League and this might push forward the player's departure from St Mary's.

Van Dijk signed a new six-year deal with Southampton in July, which was a clear indication to seasoned observers of the club that they were making sure to receive as high a fee as possible when his inevitable transfer went through.

And when asked about a reported £25m buyout, Puel confirmed: “It is not true. After this I make no comment about speculation, just to say that Virgil is an important player for the team. For me it’s not a possibility to see him leave.”

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is in desperate need of a reliable centre-half if his side are to challenge for the league title and become a force in Europe.

Van Dijk is a natural defender who can play football, his free-kick ability is fondly recalled by Celtic supporters, and therefore ticks ever box for Guardiola who finds himself under some unexpected pressure.

After winning their first ten games under the former Barcelona coach, City have registered five wins in the 16 matches since that run was ended and their leaky defence has been responsible for this dip in form.

A current Celtic defender, Erik Sviatchenko, has helped Brendan Rodgers's side become as strong at the back as they are in terms of scoring goals. The first time that has been the case since Van Dijk was at the club.

The Dane has hardly put a foot wrong this season, emerging as a leader both on and off the park, which is not dissimilar to the role Van Dijk fulfilled in his two seasons at Celtic Park.

"It has been a positive ride forward so far,” Sviatchenko told the Celtic View. “There have been some bumps on the way but they are bumps I’ve been able to overcome with the help of my team-mates and the staff.

"I’m really pleased with my development as a human-being and as a footballer, because it’s important to divide the two.

“When you go on the pitch you put on the Celtic shirt and perform as a footballer but you need to live well outside the pitch, and that’s why I’m able to perform at a high level because I feel comfortable and feel like I can improve. It’s a good environment at Celtic.

“At the moment we’re in a really good run and people are performing and taking all these good things into their next game.

“You can see we’re getting better and the Champions League campaign was a good example of that, but sometimes it’s important to give yourself breathing space and that’s going to be a good thing for us.

“We’ll have five days with the family over a busy December and then we will go for a small training camp in Dubai and we’ll start again so I think it’ll be good.

“I’ll do everything I can so we can lift as many titles as we can because I’m here to win trophies and be remembered. It means a lot to me to be a part of something that can make history and not just be around for nothing. I’m looking forward to doing everything I can with my team-mates.”