Celtic's search for a centre-forward during the recent January transfer window went down to the wire as they secured a number nine on deadline day.
The Scottish giants brought in Ireland international Adam Idah from English Championship side Norwich City on loan until the end of the season.
Interestingly, reported Hoops target Sydney van Hooijdonk turned out to be the Canaries' replacement for the Irish forward as they snapped him up from Bologna on loan with an option to buy.
Idah has already enjoyed a terrific start to life at Parkhead with two goals and one assist in his first two Scottish Premiership appearances for the Bhoys, which means that he was directly involved in all three of the side's goals in those outings.
The Norwich academy graduate will be hoping for a successful end to the season and establish himself as a memorable striker for Celtic, even if his spell does not extend beyond the summer.
When Celtic missed out on Ivan Toney
One centre-forward who could have become an icon at Parkhead had the club secured a deal for his services back in the summer of 2020 is England international Ivan Toney.
The prolific marksman was plying his trade for Peterborough in the third division of English football at the time and was set to make a move away from the East Anglian side.
Speaking on Steven Bartlett's Diary of a CEO podcast last summer, the impressive attacker revealed that he went up to Scotland to hold talks with Celtic over a potential move to Glasgow ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.
However, Toney claimed that a desire to be the main man for his next club caused him to decide against a switch to the Scottish giants, who wanted him to be one of three possible first-choice options for them at the top end of the pitch.
The English gem went on to say that Thomas Frank confirmed that he would be the main man and go-to number nine for Brentford straight away, which is what convinced him to pick the Bees ahead of Celtic, and Rangers who were also competing for his signature.
A then-Championship side, Brentford snapped him up for a fee of £5m, rising to potentially £10m with add-ons, after his prolific spell with Peterborough.
Appearances
32
Sofascore rating
7.64
Goals
24
Assists
Five
Duel success rate
48%
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the Posh star was heading into the summer of 2020 off the back of a sublime campaign in League One for his club, as he showcased his quality as a scorer and a creator of goals on a regular basis.
Celtic, managed by Neil Lennon at the time, were not willing to put faith in him to be their main man for goals off the back of that impressive season, though, and that led to him rejecting the Hoops to sign for Brentford.
Ivan Toney's goal record at Brentford
The 27-year-old sensation, who recently returned from an eight-month ban for 232 breaches of the Football Association's betting rules, has scored 71 goals in 128 matches for the Bees to date.
He hit the ground running with Frank's side in the Championship during the 2020/21 campaign and proved that Celtic made a mistake instantly.
Toney racked up a staggering return of 33 goals and ten assists in 47 league appearances, including the play-offs, for Brentford to help them achieve promotion to the Premier League.
It was then down to the former Celtic and Rangers target to prove himself in the top-flight of football in England and the superb gem has done exactly that over the last three seasons.
The experienced striker produced 12 goals and five assists in 33 matches in his first campaign with the Bees at that level before firing in 20 goals in 33 Premier League games the following term.
Since his return in January, Toney has scored three goals in four league appearances for Brentford so far this season, which takes his tally to 35 goals and nine assists in 72 top-flight outings.
The one-time England international, who was once described as a "monster" by his manager Frank, is now being looked at by huge clubs and valued at a staggering price.
Ivan Toney's current market value
According to the Evening Standard, back in January, Premier League giants Arsenal and Chelsea both have a long-standing interest in the attacker.
The report added that Brentford want a whopping fee of up to £100m for their star striker, who has proven himself to be a reliable scorer at the top level.
This means that his value has soared by a mind-blowing 1,900% from the initial £5m that the Bees paid Peterborough to secure his services less than four years ago. It would still be a huge increase of 900% if all of the add-ons to take it to £10m have been activated.
Brentford took a gamble on Toney and placed their faith in him to be the main man straight away, after his impressive form in League One, and they have been richly rewarded for that decision over the subsequent years.
His goals led them to promotion and have helped to keep them in the Premier League for two years and counting, whilst they could now make a sensational profit in the summer transfer window if a team comes in and meets their valuation.
Perhaps the most damning part of all of this is that no Celtic player, in any position, scored more than 18 Premiership goals during the 2020/21 campaign or more than 13 throughout the 2021/22 season.
Meanwhile, Toney scored 33 league goals in the 2020/21 term and hit 20 goals in the Premier League for Brentford last season, which has contributed to his soaring market value.
This is all with the benefit of hindsight but, ultimately, Lennon's reluctance to promise the Peterborough star that he would be the main marksman for the Hoops has turned out to be a huge blunder on his part.
Celtic fumbled an opportunity to sign a now-Premier League sensation, who is currently valued at £100m, for just £5m, rising to £10m, in 2020 and this is a cautionary tale that they should heed if they discover another emerging talent like him in the future.