Report: Celtic have bid rejected for Cruzeiro defender Fabricio Bruno

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Celtic have had a bid turned down by Cruzeiro for defender Fabricio Bruno, according to Globo Esporte.

Apparently the Hoops made an initial offer of around £2.5 million for the centre-half, but manager Marcio Rodrigues has insisted the Brazilian side want much more.

Celtic have supposedly watched the South American on a number of occasions, and now a new loan-to-buy bid is supposedly being prepared by the Scottish giants.

The Bhoys may not be the only interested party in Bruno next month, with Cruzeiro having previously fended off interest from Braga.

Celtic are somewhat short in central defence at the moment.

Kris Ajer and Christopher Jullien have struck up a good partnership, but then there is only Nir Bitton for backup with Jozo Simunovic having been out injured since August.

TBR’s view – Bruno a gamble

Celtic are right to be targeting another central defender, but a move for Bruno would represent something of a risk.

The 6ft 3in defender has just been part of a side that got relegated into Brazilian Serie B, although that said, he featured in just one of the club’s last five games, which were all defeats. In the three games before that run, he had helped the team keep three straight clean sheets.

Celtic seemingly see enough in him to play in the notoriously physical Scottish Premiership, so it will be interesting to see how hard they push.