15 Celtic summer transfer in and out candidates including Schalke 04 star and Bosnian international

The summer transfer window will officially open for business in just seven days’ time and significant squad movement in and out of Celtic is likely.

The Parkhead club finally have a manager in place with confirmation of Martin O’Neill’s decision to agree a new one-year contract in the dugout expected imminently after holding positive talks with majority shareholder Dermot Desmond.

Attention will soon shift to recruitment with the transfer rumour mill now in overdrive. Here are 15 candidates from those who could be heading in and out of Celtic over the coming weeks, from a signing off Schalke 04 and a Bosnian international.

Oskar Wojcik (INCOMING)

The highly-rated centre-back has told Celtic and other potential suitors that he won’t be leaving Polish club KS Cracovia this summer unless he is guaranteed regular game time. The Scottish champions were claimed to have had a £3.5m offer rejected for Wojcik in January. He has since gone on to earn a first senior cap for Poland, with Cracovia holding out for closer over £4.2m. Wojcik has strong interest from Italian clubs Fiorentina and Bologna along with Premier League new boys Coventry City.

Daizen Maeda (OUTGOING)

Martin O’Neill confirmed after the Scottish Cup final that the likelihood of the Japanese speedster pulling on a green and white jersey again was pretty slim, with a summer departure anticipated. At 28, the versatile forward will know it could be now or never to land a dream move to the English Premier League and a strong World Cup showing with Japan could aid his cause.

Jakob Breum (INCOMING)

Celtic will need to dig deep and stump up £4.4m to land the Go Ahead Eagles playmaker after failing with a January approach. The Danish youth international has gained plenty of experience in the Eredivisie, amassing over 2,200 minutes of football last season.

Reo Hatate (OUTGOING)

Japanese midfielder has reportedly informed Parkhead chiefs that he wants to leave the club this summer and bring the curtain down on his four-and-a-half year spell in Glasgow. Hatate scored eight goals last season but fell out of favour in the closing weeks of the campaign and was omitted from the squad for the Scottish Cup final triumph over Dunfermline Athletic last month.

Benjamin Tahirovic (INCOMING)

Celtic are rumoured to have joined the hunt to sign the £5m World Cup-bound Bosnian international, who plays for Danish club Brondby. Standing at 6ft 3inchs, the 23-year-old defensive midfielder is coming off an impressive season following his £2.5m switch from Ajax last summer. He also counts Roma among his former clubs and reports in Scandinavia suggest his current club won’t let him leave until after the World Cup.

Stephen Welsh (OUTGOING)

Centre-back has agreed to terminate his contract 12 months early as a ‘goodwill gesture’ after starring on loan at Motherwell and contributing to Celtic’s Premiership title win by helping the Steelmen take points of their title rivals. Swansea City looks set to be his next destination with the EFL Championship side preparing to finalise a multi-year deal for the 26-year-old. Welsh has other offers to weigh up from MLS but will now embark on a fresh challenge.

Nikolas Polster (INCOMING)

Austrian goalkeeper is viewed as a potential long-term option between the sticks for Celtic. Currently playing for Wolfsberger AC in the Austrian Bundesliga, the shot-stopper is valued at around €2m and has significant Premier League interest. Celtic want to bolster their goalkeeping department after Kasper Schmeichel announced his retirement due to injury and Polster is one name they would be keen to see compete with Viljami Sinisalo for the No.1 spot.

Maik Nawrocki (OUTGOING)

Celtic have told the Polish defender’s loan club, Hannover it will cost them around £3m to sign the centre-back on a permanent deal after impressing with the Germans last season. There remains an appetite on Hannover’s part to complete a deal for the stopper, who still has two years left to run on his Hoops contract. The German second-tier outfit are trying to persuade Celtic to loan them Nawrocki again after being scared off by their initial asking price of £3.5m, which has been reduced. The player admitted last week he doesn't know where his future lies, but would be open to a return.

He said: “Of course I would love to return, but it's not up to me now. I could come back here, stay at Celtic or go somewhere else entirely. Right now I am just so disappointed we didn't manage to win promotion for the fans because we were all convinced we would do it.”

Jari De Busser (INCOMING)

A priority position that Celtic are looking to address, the 26-year-old Belgian keeper has declared he is ready to leave Go Ahead Eagles this summer. Entering the final year of his contract, it would take the Hoops around £2m to bring him over to Scotland. De Busser has spent the last two seasons in the Eredivisie and only one other shot-stopper managed to keep more clean sheets (nine) than him last term.

Hayato Inamura (OUTGOING)

A deal has been agreed with FC Tokyo for the Japanese full-back to return to Japan on a permanent basis - just 12 months after his arrival in Glasgow. Celtic were keen to offload the summer signing, who managed only one first-team appearance for the club. Cost £250,000 from Albirex Niigata but a failure to influence first-team affairs prompted amid-season loan exit. Now Celtic are set to make a considerable profit with the J-League club coughing up around €1.5m (£1.3m) to bring him back to his homeland.

Sofiane El-Faouzi (INCOMING)

Once-capped Morocco internationalist is reportedly ‘open’ to making a £10m move to Celtic as a long queue starts to form in the race for the Schalke midfielder’s signature. The 22-year-old played a key part in helping the club end a three-year wait to return to the Bundesliga, but his lofty price tag could be a stumbling block. The lure of potential Champions League football with Celtic is of interest to El-Faouzi, who also has Brentford, Sunderland and Bologna among a growing list of interested parties.

Shin Yamada (OUTGOING)

In a similar boat to Inamura. Out of favour and on his way back to Parkhead after an underwhelming loan stint in Germany, the £1.5m Japanese hitman was unable to prevent SC Preussen Munster avoid relegation to the third-tier. He failed to score in 11 outings, mostly from the bench, during the first half of the campaign, leading to a January exit. Whilst in Germany, Yamada notched three times in his last four games to put himself in the shop window.

Zinedin Smajlovic (INCOMING)

Concrete interest has been displayed in the promising 22-year-old Sandefjord centre-back, who is valued at over €3m by his Norwegian club and is known for his aerial dominance. The Swedish-Bosnian defender has established himself as a regular in the Eliteserien this season and Celtic are likely to face stiff competition for his signature from teams across Europe. Under contract until 2028, but that hasn’t stopped the likes of Toulouse, Bodo/Glimt and Feyenoord from tracking his situation.

Milan Vitalis (INCOMING)

Midfielder has suggested it’s only a “matter of time” before he lands a big-money move away from Hungarian outfit Gyor. The 24-year-old bagged eight goals last term to help his club pip Robbie Keane’s Ferencvaros to the league title. Capped six times by Hungary at senior level, Vitalis was named as the league’s player of the year and is confident that the next step in his career is in the pipeline. “I trust that this is just the beginning of something even bigger,” he stated in an interview. “I am sure something big will happen in my life. It’s just a matter of time.”

Taïryk Arconte (INCOMING)

Celtic are one of three clubs who are keen on signing the Guadeloupe international, who plays for Rodez AF in the French second-tier. The striker has enjoyed a breakout season, netting 14 goals in 36 games across all competitions. That form has attracted interest from Millwall and Ligue 1 side Auxerre as well as the Scottish champions.