Celtic expect to wrap up the transfer of Biram Kayal from Maccabi Haifa in a matter of days and the Israeli midfielder revealed he couldn’t wait to get started playing for the club in Europe. Though the player will not be signed in time to play in the qualifying ties against Braga, Kayal said he hoped to be playing in the group stages with his new side.

The 22-year old played in the group stages of the competition with current club Maccabi last season. However, the Israeli side lost all six of their group fixtures without scoring a goal and Kayal said he hoped to improve on that with Celtic.

"I have experience of playing in the Champions League, having been there with Maccabi Haifa last season," he told the Daily Record.

"But this would be a more exciting chance to be involved in the competition. I feel I could do even better with this Celtic team.

"This is the best time for me to leave Israel and try another country and another league. This is a good prospect for me. I think I can be helpful to Celtic with the way I like to play the game."

The defensive midfielder will be following in the footsteps of former Israel star Eyal Berkovic, who played for Celtic from 1999 to 2001. Kayal revealed he had watched Berkovic’s career closely and was happy to be joining one of his former clubs.

"When I was younger, I looked up to Eyal. He was the Israeli player who made his way to the top of the game in Europe," he explained.

"He played in England and also at Celtic. I remember looking at him playing in front of the big crowds at Celtic and feeling very proud.

"It would be wonderful and make me proud to think I could leave Israel and do as well as he did."