Celtic have held talks with departing Manchester City central defender Dedryck Boyata over a summer transfer to Parkhead.
The 24-year-old Belgian is understood to have spoken with the SPFL Premiership champions' manager, Ronny Deila, in addition to their chief executive, Peter Lawwell, and assistant coach, John Collins, as the club seeks to bolster its defensive options.
Jason Denayer is returning to City at the end of a successful 12-month loan arrangement and there continues to be speculation over the future of Virgil van Dijk after he admitted he would be open to the right opportunity elsewhere.
Negotiations were held between Celtic and Boyata in Manchester earlier this week with the player expected to leave on a free transfer despite having a year left to run on his current agreement.
Boyata signed a one-year contract extension last term that took him up to the summer of 2016 and was reported to have boosted his wages from £12,000-a-week to a staggering £35,000-a-week.
He had only played one Premier League match under manager Manuel Pellegrini prior to signing the deal, but City were under pressure to meet the Premier League's rules on the quota of homegrown players.
It is understood that City have discussed a settlement with the player that will allow him to move on without a fee changing hands, but they are likely to ask for a percentage of any future transfer should a deal with Celtic go through.
Boyata joined the City academy in 2006 and has been sent out on loan to Bolton Wanderers and FC Twente over the course of his career there.
Roberto Mancini gave him his first-team debut in a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough in the FA Cup in January 2010, but his opportunities have been severely limited.
He did begin this season by starting in the 3-0 Community Shield loss to Arsenal at Wembley Stadium and has made another five appearances since. However, he had not been involved in the first-team squad for three months until making a last-minute appearance in the club's 1-0 league victory at Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month.
Boyata certainly accepts that his time at the Etihad Stadium is up and admitted in an interview last month that he is seeking a fresh challenge for next season.
"I am playing in a big team, but, for myself, it's not good enough," he said.
"I am 24 now and not the same player I was before. I think I have more maturity and feel like I have stepped up.
"People here have seen what I can do, but I am not getting the chance every weekend, so I see myself going somewhere that I can play."
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