Scottish champions Celtic are believed to be eyeing a move for Maccabi Tel Aviv starlet Oscar Gloukh, according to recent reports.

What's the word?

Rumours back in September suggested that the Glasgow side were keeping tabs on the 18-year-old amid the possibility of losing a handful of their key figures after the upcoming World Cup in Qatar.

The exciting teenager - whose current deal is set to expire in the summer of 2025 - is believed to be valued at around £8m, having also been heavily linked with the Hoops' Old Firm rivals Rangers during the summer window.

Amid such speculation linking the Israeli sensation to Parkhead, journalist Pete O'Rouke - in an interview with Football FanCast - has now provided an update on that potential interest, stating:

"It probably means a January transfer is out of the picture here now for this deal, but I'm sure they might be looking at it in the summer and see what they can do".

Imagine him and O'Riley

The highly-rated "wonderkid" - as dubbed by Gers podcaster Andy Barnett - has caught the eye as a result of his stunning form for his current side of late, having scored four goals and provided five assists in just 11 league games so far this season.

Despite only making his senior debut back in March, Gloukh is already making waves at first-team level - hence the interest from both the Bhoys and those at Ibrox - with the youngster's total tally for the club standing at seven goals and five assists in just 25 games thus far.

Such quality has been lauded by Maccabi owner Mitchell Goldhar, who recently said of the emerging prospect: "Gloukh is one of the best players who grew up here in our academy. He has abilities that remind us of the greatest of them all."

ESPN also notably lauded the promising asset for his form at this summer's U19 European Championship, stating:

'Gloukh was already on the radar of many scouts, having impressed at club level and stood out in the qualifying rounds of the Euros, but few expected that the Israeli would make such an impact.

'A mature, intelligent and technically brilliant attacking midfielder -- part No. 8, part No. 10, or creative winger -- he has won many admirers with his performances and talk of a €10m move this summer is gathering pace.

'Hard to dispossess when running at opponents, Gloukh is a brilliant dribbler, who always seems to pick up the ball in the most favourable positions and is able to slide teammates through with perfectly weighted passes.

'His exquisite touch to set up the 2-1 goal against Austria was nothing short of sublime and he has been unplayable at times, with an intuition and flair in the final third rarely seen from one so young.'

The Israel U21 international may well be an attractive option for Ange Postecoglou as a result of his invaluable versatility, with the 5 foot 7 gem having the ability to feature in a central midfield role, but also in an attacking midfield berth.

Were the diminutive speedster to be deployed in that latter role, he could well form an exciting, creative partnership with current Celtic star Matt O'Riley in the centre of the park, with the former MK Dons man currently thriving at Paradise following his January arrival.

While the London-born menace has taken on a deeper role in the absence of skipper Callum McGregor of late, the Denmark youth international has largely shone in a more advanced position in 2022 thus far, with 12 goal contributions in 40 games for the club to date across all fronts.

To have such a youthful duo working in tandem could well be a mouthwatering prospect for Postecoglou and co, with the title-winning coach likely hoping he could build his side around such dynamic individuals in the years to come.

While Gloukh may be a relative unknown to most in Scotland, as the case of O'Riley has shown, the former Yokohama boss appears to have delivered a knack for uncovering hidden gems in the market.