Adam Idah has been pegged as many things already during his short time in Glasgow. A last-minute option. A panic signing. A Norwich reserve. And now, potentially, a top-level striker who could star in the English Premier League.

Rather unsurprisingly, that last endorsement came from his new manager Brendan Rodgers, while the preceding descriptions came from within a sceptical Celtic fanbase, whose apathy around the arrival of Idah had as much to do with their club’s overall transfer window as it did with any appraisal of his ability.

Having watched Idah’s promising cameo at Pittodrie on his debut and now having seen him at close quarters though, Rodgers is in no doubt about the talent he has on his hands in the form of the 22-year-old Republic of Ireland international.

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Pretty soon, he is convinced that he and the Celtic support will soon be singing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to Idah, and they will join him in heartily singing his praises.

Rodgers said: “He excited me when I saw his name because, as I’ve said, I saw him when he was a young player, playing for the Republic of Ireland and Norwich and then coming up against him in the Premier League and seeing the talent.

“If I can unlock the talent that he has then this is a boy that can be a top-level striker.

“He’s not just a boy where you max out everything and he can only get to a certain level. This is everything - this is 6ft 2in, power, speed. You saw some of his touches the other day, he only came on the pitch, the ball is rattled in at him and you can see the softness of his feet.

“So, once he finds the relationships with the other players and the runs - and we’ll play to his strengths because he wants to run in behind - then he’s going to be a real handful.

“There’s no doubt [he could be a top-end EPL striker]. But let’s do it here first!”

The cynics among the Celtic support will wait to be convinced, and Rodgers isn’t oblivious to the indifferent response his signing.

“I’ve had that with a number of players,” he said.

"I remember taking a player to Swansea who ended up having a great career there. It was something not too dissimilar. It was Wayne Routledge and I had seen him as a young player coming through the academy as a 19-year-old at Crystal Palace.

“He was a brilliant player but when Crystal Palace got relegated from the Premier League he went to Tottenham and then had another couple of moves which didn’t quite work out for him.

“We signed him from Newcastle and we signed him on the basis of what I knew he could do because of all the stats and everything else now tells you what people can do.

“But what the stats don’t tell you is that Wayne was a big, big talent as a young player and he maybe just got lost for a little moment in his career. He was maybe broken a little bit.

“So, can we piece him together again and give him confidence? And he was absolutely brilliant for Swansea - he ended his career there.

“And now I see this guy here and he’s got everything. But there is clearly something that’s not gone quite right. He’s had a few injuries and sometimes the young guy coming through at his own club doesn’t get the chance to stay in the team, especially when you’re down at the bottom of the league and you need experience.

“But he’s come through that - he’s played over 100 odd games and has 25 international caps and sometimes now, by moving away, it can make him feel like he is now ready to perform.

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“Whether he stays here for four months or four years, this period will open his eyes to proper football. It will teach him how to come here, be a winner and improve your game.”

Rodgers becomes animated when he speaks about ‘unlocking’ the potential of Idah, a challenge as a coach he feels is squarely in his wheelhouse.

“Ultimately, that’s what coaching and managing is,” he said.

“Whether it’s in a newspaper office or whether it’s here - it’s all about maximising when you can get from each person. That’s your job. When you are coaching and managing a group of players and staff it’s about maximising what you can get out of them.

“I think, over the course of my career, it’s been one of my strengths, and so I always look to do that. And seeing this boy at the age of 22? It makes me really excited.

“Then working with him on the training pitch and seeing his finishing yesterday - left foot, right foot, spin, strike - he was absolutely brilliant.”

Having played in 34 matches for Norwich as well in three internationals this season before arriving at Celtic, Rodgers is in no doubt that he is ready to be pitched in from the start against Hibernian at Easter Road this evening, and that may even be in tandem with Kyogo Furuhashi.

Should he indeed hit the ground running, and after the big build-up that Rodgers has given him, it may be safe to assume that the Celtic manager would have quite liked – at the very least – an ‘option to buy’ clause inserted into his loan contract.

“It was just about getting him in,” he said.

“He wasn’t a ‘last minute’ choice. It was about availability.

“I only wanted to bring in someone who could really excite me and add to this team rather than just a journeyman striker who could come in to be second choice. I’d rather give that opportunity to our young players.

“But in Adam, we’ve got a genuine player and a big, big talent if we can get him to consistently perform. And I’m excited about that.

“Last time, when I was here, we had the beginnings of what was going to be a great combination between Moussa Dembele and Odsonne Edouard. It was all set, and it was really exciting, but then obviously we lost one.

“But there’s a chance for us to do that over the coming months to give us that threat and that quality while still maintaining the structure that we want to play with.”