Transfer talk may be a bit thin on the ground right now, but the Daily Record have dropped a belter from north of the Scottish border - claiming Manchester United are keen on Celtic’s Moussa Dembele.

What’s the story?

Dumping a big dollop of nastiness for Bhoys fans in the wake of Celtic’s latest routine Premiership win, this time over Ross County (whoever he is), the Daily Record reveal that Man United scouts were in attendance to keep an eye on Dembele. Alas, in a move that proves top-level football clubs are sometimes incompetent, the Red Devils’ talent-spotter, Stephen McCarthy, was almost left high and dry at the Global Energy Stadium as the Frenchman was not used until after the hour mark - with Leigh Griffiths preferred by boss Brendan Rodgers.

But, McCarthy’s journey was not wasted as Dembele found the back of the net in the 4-0 win, taking his season’s tally to seven in league action and 13 across all competitions. His form has already led to tentative links with Arsenal, while former Fulham player Lewis Holtby has claimed that he thinks this could be the 20-year-old’s only season in Scotland.

Is he any good?

Yes. Dembele broke through at Fulham during their relegation season of 2013/14 and continued to hover around the Cottagers’ first-team during their first campaign back in the second tier. The Londoners, of course, remained out of the big time for 2015/16, which was the striker’s standout campaign to date as he smashed 15 goals and weighed in with six assists.

As well all know, he departed on a free transfer a few months ago, making the somewhat surprise choice to pursue the next phase of his career in Glasgow. To be fair, his decision is paying dividends, with Celtic attracting much media attention highlighting his contributions.

Dembele has already notched a hat-trick in the Old Firm Derby and even managed to net twice against Manchester City in the Champions League, showing that the pressure of the biggest games doesn’t phase him. Whether or not he’s good enough for Man United remains to be seen, though.

Should he be tempted by Man United?

This is a tricky one. Dembele clearly won’t spend much more of his career in Scotland should his form continue and it’s fairly obvious that he chose Celtic as a shop window to earn a switch to either a Premier League side or a team from one of Europe’s traditional elite divisions.

Man United are fairly short in terms of striking options, but should he move to Old Trafford either in January or at the end of the season, he’ll be up against Marcus Rashford plus either Zlatan Ibrahimovic or whoever the Red Devils sign as their next marquee man. Overall, game time will be limited.

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