RONNY DEILA today claimed Celtic are in a win-win situation with sought-after hotshot Virgil van Dijk.

The Hoops boss praised the Dutch defender for making himself a multi-million-pound target for clubs desperate to take him south or back to the Continent. Van Dijk's value and profile rose when he knocked in two of Celtic's goals in their 4-0 Scottish Cup victory over 10-man Hearts at Tynecastle yesterday, with Anthony Stokes and John Guidetti also getting on the scoresheet.

That has fired them into the hat for today's fifth-round draw. But with the transfer window opening in exactly one month's time, Celtic could find themselves having to stave off unwanted predators before that tie kicks off, Deila is unperturbed at the prospect of big clubs with fat cheque books coming calling.

More importantly, he insists that Van Dijk is not becoming distracted by the growing speculation that he is soon going to become the Parkhead club's next big-money export.

And the manager heaped credit on the 23-year-old for the way he is remaining focused and dedicated to improving himself as a player and as a member of the Hoops side.

"I think Virgil is enjoying being at Celtic, and we want to keep him here," said Deila.

"That's the main thing. He has been through this speculation before. Now he is more mature.

"I know that when it happens, it happens. If not, you just keep on doing what you have to do."

For now, that means honing Van Dijk's skills on the Lennoxtown training field, with every session making him more of an appreciating asset to the club.

Deila revealed that Van Dijk is applying himself more than ever and added: "We work hard with every player we have in the squad, and that includes Virgil.

"What you do in training, you get in matches. And Virgil is improving as a professional.

"He really excels in training, and you can see he is now taking that into good performances in games."

The fear is that Van Dijk finds the game too easy in this country and will feel compelled to move to a better league to fully test himself.

But Deila is confident there are enough challenges for him here - and they come with a silver lining.

"It's not easy for him," said the manager. "It's all about winning trophies. Virgil has never won the Treble before, and he is in the next round of the Europa League with us as well.

"So there are a lot of challenges for him here, and he can develop at Celtic as well.

"He has to work on the detail and always reflect on what he is doing.

"If he does that, then the chances will come if that is what he wants.

"If he is going, I hope it is to the biggest clubs and not an average English Premier League team.

"He has everything you need to do it at that [top-four club] level. But I hope we can keep him to challenge for the four competitions and that would be good for him, too."

The most comforting thought for Deila is that the better Van Dijk plays, the more valuable he becomes.

"Everybody wins then, that is true," smiled the Norwegian who added that the talks over securing Guidetti are continuing.

He said: "We are in dialogue, so we will see what is happening."