Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou is hoping to beat Premier League giants Arsenal to the signing of Brighton goalkeeper Mat Ryan, according to Football Insider

What's the latest Celtic transfer news? 

The report claims new Hoops boss Ange Postecoglou is eager to bring his countryman up to Glasgow as a new era for the club gets underway. 

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Indeed, in order to gazump Arsenal - where Ryan spent the second-half of the 2020/21 season on loan - Celtic are reportedly prepared to offer him a long-term contract as well as the club's No.1 shirt. 

At this stage, the Parkhead giants are said to be putting a contract package together. 

Would Ryan be a good signing for Celtic?

Given the fact both Scott Bain and Vasilios Barkas came under criticism last year, strengthening Celtic's options between the sticks looks a shrewd move. 

Having played under Postecoglou with the Australian national team, Ryan would appear to be an upgrade (at least on paper) having produced a much higher save percentage than Bain over the course of their respective careers (71.5% to 67.2% via FBREF). 

In terms of Barkas (who did record a higher save percentage than Ryan last season at 66.7% to 59%), the Greek international has been criticised for not looking as if he's commanding enough to convince, so a move for an international goalkeeper with a huge amount of experience in the Premier League might be a way of further shoring things up. 

In fact, Ryan's record of stopping 7.8% of the crosses he's faced in the last year has him in the top 65 percentile of goalkeepers across Europe's big five leagues, which would speak to a commanding presence. 

What has Ryan said about Postecoglou? 

Speaking to The Guardian in 2018, Ryan revealed that he had urged Postecoglou not to leave his post as Australia manager after taking them to the 2018 World Cup following a play-off win over Honduras. 

“Shocked [about his resignation] is a good way to put it,” he said. 

“We had qualified and thought: ‘No way.’ I sent him a message along the lines of: ‘Don’t leave.’ It is a game of wait and see now to see who will be leading us into it."

Which other goalkeepers have Celtic been linked with?

Football Insider have also mooted Newcastle United's Freddie Woodman as a potential target for Celtic following his loan spells with Swansea City, while The Daily Star claimed Asmir Begovic was also of interest. 

Still, with Ryan having worked under the new manager before, coupled with the fact he can reportedly leave Brighton, at least attempting to bring him in would appear to be a logical move. 

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