James Léa Siliki: Celtic 'make approach' for Rennes midfielder

James Lea Siliki celebrates with the Rennes fans after a victory

RMC claims the Breton side have already rejected a bid from Portugese side Porto, understood to be €8 million (£7.2 million).

The 23-year-old, who was capped by France at Under-19 level, spent time with Paris Saint-Germain and Guingamp during his youth career.

He scored once in three appearances for Guingamp B before his move to Roazhon Park in 2014, and played more than 50 games for Rennes B in the fifth tier of French football before joining the senior squad in 2017.

Léa Siliki made his first-team debut in January 2017 as a 78th minute substitute for Aldo Kalulu in a 1-1 draw with FC Nantes.

He has since played 72 times for Rennes, scoring three and assisting seven.

While Léa Siliki is under contract until June 2021, and his reported £7m+ price tag may seem hefty, wantaway midfielder Olivier Ntcham could be used as a makeweight in a prospective deal.

Earlier this week, the France Under-21 midfielder was quoted as saying he was disappointed not to have joined Porto last summer, admitted speculation linking him with Rennes' fellow Ligue 1 side Marseille was flattering and added: "We can do as many matches as we want but, with all due respect for my opponents, if the level in front [of you] is not high, you do not progress."

Celtic manager Neil Lennon confirmed he would be holding talks with the former Manchester City youngster about his mindset, adding: "I think it is fair tyo say that a lot of us [at Celtic] were not satisfied with the comments.

"When I speak to Olivier it will be done privately but, you can imagine, we find the comments untimely and not particularly accurate.

"He still has a future [at Celtic] - he is under contract. But I will be speaking to him about his attitude towards the club which, the way it came across, didn't look good."