RONNY DEILA last night revealed Celtic had been chasing Scott Allan since last year and the manager knew even then that he wanted to sign the midfielder.

The Parkhead boss predicted a bright future for the 23-year-old midfielder at the club following his much talked about transfer on Friday.

Allan was greeted by a standing ovation when he took a bow before Saturday's win over Inverness Caledonian Thistle and was mobbed by autograph hunters outside the stadium.

Deila was clearly delighted a deal was done with Hibs and now he can't wait to work with a player he has long admired.

The Celtic manager said: "We first watched Scott last year. We saw him several games and I have team around me who knows Scottish football very well so we have known about him for a while.

“Scott will bring technique, creativity and understanding. He can see the final pass. You need that technique in the final third of the pitch.

"He has that and I’m looking forward to working with him.

“I don’t know Scott very well, but we had a good conversation and he seems mature and is really motivated to start his Celtic career.”

In his brief speech to the support on Saturday, Allan said that joining Celtic in football terms was a "no-brainer."

Deila said: "That is a good line, a good way to put it. That tells us that he really, really wants to play for Celtic.

“We shall see when he plays. We will take it day-by-day. Scott has to get to know the environment, get training and then the games will come."

Allan will not be the last piece of business done by Celtic in the final weeks of the transfer window.

The club have had Sébastien Pocognoli watched, a Belgian left-back who in on the fringes of the West Brom squad.

Emilio Izaguirre has played better recently that he did last season, but the position remains one Deila believes has to be strengthened.

Pocognoli, 28, has 13 caps for his country but has fallen out of the picture at The Hawthorns. He is available for a modest fee.

Another area the Norwegian will look at is that in the last three Ladbrokes Premiership games his team have allowed previous high standards to slip.

They conceded two late goals to an Inverness team who had not been in the game at all at the weekend, and while this is not a huge disaster, it is something that will be discussed ahead of the Malmo match in Glasgow on Wednesday night.

Deila said: "For us, it is just about being switched on for 90 minutes because if we do then it is very difficult to beat us.

“Saturday was as good as we have played in that 70 minute spell. I was irritated after the Kilmarnock game, but we were not sloppy at the weekend, it was just a case of us not doing the easy things well. It was a terrific performance."

Deila was delighted with two-goal Stuart Armstrong who played arguably his best game for the club in the 4-2 win.

He will definitely start against the Swedes as will most of the eleven who began the Inverness match.

Deila said: "Stuart was quick against Inverness. I think he showed that it was good for him to get a rest during the week. That made him even better, he was really good.

“There could be changes but a lot of the players who started on Saturday will play against Malmo."

Allan, who will today speak to the media about his move, admitted he was blown away by the reaction given to him by the Celtic fans.

Speaking to the club's website, he said: "Walking down the tunnel gives you goosebumps, just seeing the size of the stadium,.

"Now I just can’t wait to go out and perform. It was an unbelievable experience. It was an emotional experience. It was different class.

“I want to concentrate on my football and become a better player and I want to develop and get myself into the starting line-up.

“It was a no brainer coming here. It’s a huge club, playing in the Premiership again and on the European stage and it is a chance to play and train with great players.

“I just want to thank the Celtic supporters for my welcome and I want them to know I’ll always remember it. Now I can hopefully give them some good moments on the pitch.

"I know quite a few of the boys really well so that’ll help me settle in and they seem like a good squad of boys too.

“When you’ve got a manager who wants to develop you and make you better then you want to work hard for them.

"That’s what I had for Alan Stubbs and hopefully Ronny Deila can do the same. I spoke to the manager yesterday and he said he was delighted to have me on board and I just said I was looking forward to working with him and developing as a player."