If it was simply down to physical appearance, then Paulo Bernardo would clearly be the perfect replacement for Matt O’Riley. When both players were in the Celtic midfield last season, it was a struggle at times to tell them apart.
You would often hear some of the shorter-sighted members of the press pack giving thanks that one or the other had decided to wear gloves on a particular day, or had decided to wear an outlandish pair of boots, anything that would differentiate them from their midfield partner beyond the number on their back.
There are more than just aesthetic similarities between the players though, and part of the motivation for Brendan Rodgers bringing Bernardo back to the club on a permanent basis for £3.5m plus-addons may well have been the prospect of O’Riley leaving.
In fact, that may have been part of the reasoning for bringing him to Glasgow on loan from Benfica last summer in the first instance, allowing him to acclimatise to both the environment and what is required of a midfielder in a Rodgers team before being asked to step up more regularly during this coming campaign.
O’Riley has yet to depart the club, of course, and was on the plane as Celtic flew out to the United States yesterday to commence their pre-season tour. But with an enquiry having been received by Juventus, a second offer already in from Atalanta and the likes of Atletico Madrid maintaining an interest, it looks certain he will depart, and that Celtic will be well recompensed to the tune of £20m-plus.
The question is, do they reinvest a huge chunk of that money in bringing in a tried and tested replacement, or is Bernardo that man?
The Celtic midfield of captain Callum McGregor, O’Riley and Reo Hatate have been considered the untouchable holy trinity when all of them have been fit and available, but that often wasn’t the case last term.
When the Portuguese was called upon last season to fill in though, it was mostly at the attacking apex of that three in place of Hatate, who endured an injury-hit campaign. And he did so impressively, particularly around the turn of the year as he bagged crucial goals and assists against Dundee, St Mirren and Rangers.
His stunning strike against Celtic’s city rivals in the New Year fixture though wasn’t the only time he proved his chops as a big-game player though, and although he had rather been shunted back into a supporting role by the end of the season, he came up with a huge moment off the bench in the Scottish Cup final.
With the seconds ticking away and extra time looking a foregone conclusion, he took on the responsibility to drive towards the Rangers goal and get the shot away that was spilled by Jack Butland, allowing Adam Idah to tap home and ultimately clinch Celtic the double.
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Is he capable though of playing in that slightly deeper role occupied by O’Riley last term, and still match the attacking output of Celtic’s player of the year, though? O’Riley scored 13 goals and provided 11 assists last season in 32 league matches, while Bernardo had three of each across the campaign in 19 appearances.
O’Riley though bagged just four goals in the previous campaign, so does Bernardo have it in him to take a similar leap next term, and become a more consistent source of goals and assists as he starts matches more consistently? The evidence would suggest he may just be able to.
He also recognises that as a Celtic player, he can't only contribute sporadically when it comes to goals and assists.
“I have to do my best," he said last season.
"Happily everything is going well for me, but I want to do more.
“I have to improve a lot in my game so I just have to continue to work hard and everything is going to go well."
What is also encouraging is that Bernardo looked comfortable at Champions League level, putting in a particularly impressive performance in the 2-2 draw with Atletico Madrid at Celtic Park when he replaced Hatate in the opening minutes after the Japanese picked up a knock.
He also has the endorsement of Celtic captain McGregor, who is in no doubt about the qualities of his teammate.
“Listen, he has been an important player for us – he has big technical quality, he is a young kid who wants to do well,” McGregor said.
“So, that is the type of profile we want at the club. Hopefully we can bring him back.
“He is a great lad as well. He works ever so hard, and he is a part of the group we have got.
“Obviously the club will decide in terms of what happens there, but that is certainly the profile that we want.
“You want hungry players who are technically good and can come and make an impact as well.”
Celtic manager Rodgers had hoped to have three new signings with him as he took his squad Stateside this week, but while the club will indeed confirm the arrivals of Bernardo and Kasper Schmeichel soon, only back-up keeper Viljami Sinisalo - a £1m arrival from Aston Villa - made it onto the flight that left Glasgow Airport yesterday morning.
