[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast's Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news...

Hapoel Be’er Sheva defender Hatem Abd Elhamed is on the verge of signing for Neil Lennon's Celtic, according to The Scottish Sun.

What's the story?

Celtic are reportedly close to bringing a third defender to the club this summer in the shape of Abd Elhamed. Lennon has already signed Christopher Jullien and Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo.

And the boss has spoken about his desire to bring more signings to Parkhead: "Right-back is a priority, but we have a number of positions I’d like to strengthen like midfield and one or two attacking areas.

“You don’t want to overcook it either, but we want to add to the quality in the squad that we already have."

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia's biggest football stars in the video below...

Balance is needed

Bolingoli-Mbombo is an attack-minded left-back, a trait Lennon likes but wants to alter slightly, stating this week: "That’s something we’ll have to temper a little bit but you can see he can play left-back and left-wing."

With the former Rapid Vienna man's attacking tendencies, Lennon has opted for Kristoffer Ajer, a central defender, on the other side so far this term. Ajer's defensive capabilities mean that he regularly tucks in, forming a back three as Bolingoli-Mbombo bombs forward.

Abd Elhamed played the majority of his 26 games at centre-back last season but is equally capable on the right-side of defence. Given his versatility (Transfermarkt say he has played seven different positions in his career), the 28 year-old could replace Ajer on the right, which would be doing a big favour for the Norwegian.

Watch Celtic Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

This would allow Ajer, who was fantastic in a central role last season, to revert back to his more natural position without losing the balance he provided.

With Bolingoli-Mbombo racing forward on the left and the attacking force that is James Forrest playing in front of whoever gets the nod on the right, it makes sense for Lennon to opt for a defender suited to covering inside. Abd Elhamed could do just that as well as providing cover for Lennon's current crop of centre-backs too. A very sensible signing indeed.