The transfer window may have slammed shut on Monday, but Celtic's incoming business is not yet concluded. During the winter window, the Scottish champions brought in five players, namely defenders Julián Araujo and Benjamin Arthur as well as attackers Joel Mvuka, Tomáš Čvančara and Junior Adamu, all on various loan deals.
Now, though, speaking during his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's Scottish Cup tie against Dundee, manager Martin O'Neill confirmed that he has spoken to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain ahead of a proposed move. The England international will undergo a medical at Lennoxtown before signing a short-term contract until the end of the season.
Now 32 years old, he has been training with former club Arsenal in recent weeks in an attempt to build up some fitness and help him find a new club. Oxlade-Chamberlain has been without a club since last summer, his most recent appearance coming for Beşiktaş against Adana Demirspor in İstanbul, an 11-minute cameo, back on 11 May last year, 271 days ago.
Thus, the former Liverpool player will certainly be lacking match sharpness, but could prove to be a game-changing addition in the Premiership title race. However, what will the arrival of the Ox mean for Celtic's player of the season so far?
How Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will fit in at Celtic
Celtic's recent recruitment has been widely criticised and rightly so. Supporters protest against the board at every match, while friction between the hierarchy and Brendan Rodgers ultimately led to the manager's shock departure in October. Many recent signings, most-notably Michel-Ange Balikwisha, have been pretty underwhelming.
However, one player who has excelled is Benjamin Nygren. The Sweden international has now netted 15 times in just 38 outings in hoops, on target in three successive matches, firing home a stunning free-kick at Tynecastle, before also finding the target when Utrecht and Falkirk visited Parkhead.
The £1.7 million paid to Nordsjælland to secure his signature appears to be an absolute bargain. When Nygren arrived, it appeared as though he was signed to replace Nicolas Kühn on the right-wing, the German joining Como for £16.5 million.
However, both Rodgers and O'Neill have favoured deploying him as part of the midfield trio, most commonly starting alongside Callum McGregor and Arne Engels since the 73 year old's return. Well, this is what makes Oxlade-Chamberlain's signing particularly intriguing.
Throughout his career, the Ox has always been known for his versatility. He started out as a right-winger, but was deployed in various roles by Arsène Wenger, most notably starting at left-wing-back when the Gunners beat Chelsea in the 2017 FA Cup Final at Wembley.
A few months later, he joined Liverpool for £35 million, which remains Arsenal's record sale to this day. Jürgen Klopp recruited him to be a central midfielder, a position he excelled in, before rupturing his ACL during a Champions League semi-final against Roma at Anfield in April 2018. In truth, he has never really recovered from this, returning against Huddersfield Town after 366 days on the sidelines.
It'll be fascinating to see where Oxlade-Chamberlain is deployed, potentially set to debut when bottom-of-the-table Livingston visit Glasgow's East End on Wednesday. If O'Neill views him as a winger, then Nyrgen will continue centrally, but if the Englishman has been recruited as a midfielder, the Swede could be pushed into the front three. Either way, Celtic's top scorer this season has to remain in the XI; the question simply is in what role?