Celtic have tabled an offer for Gamba Osaka midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi, according to The Athletic’s Kieran Devlin.

The Lowdown: Ideguchi profiled

Ideguchi appears to be one of three Japanese targets for Ange Postecoglou in the New Year alongside Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda.

[web_stories_embed url="https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-18/" title="Celtic updates!!" poster="" width="360" height="600" align="none"]

The 25-year-old can play in a central or attacking midfield role and is valued at £720,000 by Transfermarkt.

Ideguchi has made 182 appearances for his current employers, 41 of which have come in 2021. He also has 13 caps to his name for his country, and it seems as if the Hoops are stepping up their interest in the former Leeds United man.

The Latest: Devlin’s claim

Devlin shared a story on Thursday morning ahead of the Hoops’ Europa League clash with Real Betis.

Within his report, he said 'Celtic are believed to have tabled an offer for midfielder Ideguchi', with Gamba Osaka ‘willing’ to allow Ideguchi to enter talks with the Hoops.

Devlin’s in-depth piece on Ideguchi is available to view here, with Japanese journalist Alan Gibson suggesting in the piece the midfielder is ‘ready’ for ‘Ange-ball’.

The Verdict: Starting to take shape…

Postecoglou has recently admitted that the club are on schedule with January signings, and this latest update backs up his claim.

Should Ideguchi make the move to Parkhead, he’d give the Hoops boss another versatile option in midfield, which seems to be needed as Postecoglou has relied heavily on Callum McGregor, David Turnbull and Tom Rogic so far this season.

He has plenty of experience in Japan, so Postecoglou will know just what he could bring to Celtic, and it seems as if the Hoops have stepped up their attempts to secure Ideguchi’s services with an offer now on the table.

In other news: Sky Sports journalist drops Celtic injury update on 'brilliant' star.