Celtic have already been hit with a frustrating injury blow to one of their new summer recruits as Marco Tilio is set to miss the start of the 2023/24 campaign.
Hoops head coach Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that the winger, who was signed from Australian side Melbourne City on a permanent deal, will not be available for selection for the first couple of months of the season.
However, that does not rule out the possibility of the Scottish giants lining up with a fresh attacking addition on the wing when they face Ross County on the opening day next month.
Celtic have been linked with a swoop for Shakhtar Donetsk forward Tete, who has requested to leave his current club as he does not want to return to Ukraine after loan spells with Lyon and Leicester City, where he scored once in nine Premier League starts.
How good is Tete?
The 23-year-old wizard is a player who has the quality to be an excellent signing for the Hoops, if he is able to translate his form from his time in France over to Scotland, and a big upgrade on James Forrest.
Tete caught the eye as he spent the second half of the 2021/22 campaign and then the first half of the following season on loan at Lyon from Shakhtar.
During his first spell, the Brazilian gem averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.23 across Ligue 1 appearances – a score only two Hoops players bettered last season – and contributed with two goals alongside five assists.
This was followed by six goals and two assists across 17 outings in the French top-flight last season, which earned him an average Sofascore rating of 7.04.
Tete, therefore, racked up 15 direct goal contributions in 26 games for Lyon – an average of one every 1.73 games. This shows that the right winger was able to make a significant impact at the top end of the pitch on a regular basis from a wide position, by using his finishing ability and creativity to punish opposition teams.
Forrest, who is also predominantly deployed on the right flank, has struggled to provide quality end product week-in-week-out over the last two seasons.
Last term, the veteran Hoops gem produced four goals and two assists in 16 Scottish Premiership matches, which earned him an average Sofascore rating of 6.94.
This came after the 32-year-old magician averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.74 to go with one goal and two assists over 19 league games for Celtic during the 2021/22 campaign.
These statistics suggest that the potential is there for Tete to offer far more than Forrest in the final third, both in terms of being able to create and score goals, whilst also having the ability to deliver better performances.
The 5 foot 9 dynamo would also come in as someone who already knows what Rodgers wants from his players, as they worked together at Leicester earlier this year before the Northern Irishman's exit.
Tete's touch was hailed as "immaculate" by the ex-Liverpool boss and Celtic's interest in signing him now suggests that the manager saw enough in the young talent in England to suggest that he would improve his squad in Glasgow, which is backed up by the aforementioned statistics.
