Ange Postecolgou on January transfer scouting mission as Celtic boss ranked higher than Jose Mourinho in top 50 best managers list

Ange Postecoglou has revealed Celtic’s January transfer plans are already well underway as he scours the globe in an attempt to repeat the success of last season.

The Australian outlined the importance of completing business early last winter as the Parkhead club finalised deals for Japanese trio Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi before the January window even reopened.

Matt O’Riley also boosted his squad before the transfer deadline and Postecoglou admits the Hoops scouting department are working hard behind the scenes to unearth more hidden gems from across the continent to boost their title defence.

Celtic currently have another 12 games before the January transfer window opens, with the World Cup break separating their schedule by five weeks next month.

Speaking ahead of tonight’s Scottish League Cup quarter-final tie against Motherwell, he said: “It was really beneficial for us last year to do our business early in January. That helped us in the back half of the season. We’re going to have to do something similar this January. We are well underway with our planning.

“Our strategy is already in place, and hopefully, it all comes together. We’re looking everywhere in terms of our recruitment. Mark Lawwell is in the building now, and the reason I brought him in is that he knows what I am looking for. The brief is to scour the world for that.

“The Japanese and Asian market is one I’m really familiar with, and I still think there is value there for players, and I know how they would fit into what we do. We signed Alexandro Bernabei from Argentina, so South America is also an area we are looking at.

“With Mark now working and knowing how we do things, we know wxactly what we’re looking for. There are some parameters financially that we have to work with, but the key criteria is the kind of characters they are and how they conduct themselves. Whether they are from Europe, Asia, South America or Africa, we factor that into any player we bring in.”

Meanwhile, Postecoglou has been ranked as the 30th best manager in world football according to Four Four Two - overtaking Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst in 44th.

The UK football magazine rates the 50 top managers each year and in their latest monthly edition, the Hoops boss has made the list following his Parkhead revolution last season.

The Australian fronted a huge rebuild of the club last summer after finishing 25 points behind their Old Firm rivals during the previous season and the former Socceroos’ head coach earned plaudits for reclaiming the Premiership title.

Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola takes the number one spot, closely followed by Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid), Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool, Antonio Conte (Juventus) and Stefano Pioli (AC Milan) to complete the top five.

After previously being ranked 39th in 2015, Postecoglou now finds himself ahead of Jose Mourinho and Luis Enrique in the list.

An extract from the magazine read: “The appointment of Ange Postecoglou drew some puzzling looks from zome - especially after Eddie Howe’s ‘will he, won’t he’ Celtic saga. It’s safe to say he’s won the doubters over, however, with his stunning possession style, which has lifted Celtic into the Champions League group stage again.

“The Australian is already being tipped for massive jobs - and after a stint at City Football Group side Yokohama F. Marinos, he’s had a Vieira-like transition from obscurity to becoming one of the most thrilling managers in Britain.”