SINCLAIR SIGNS ON

£3.5m winger in the frame for Tynecastle

SCOTT SINCLAIR could make his Celtic debut in today’s Premiership opener at Tynecastle after completing his £3.5million move from Aston Villa to the Scottish champions.

Sinclair has signed a four-year contract that reunites him with his former Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers and the Parkhead club were last night waiting on clearance that would allow the 27-year-old to play a part in this afternoon’s trip to Edinburgh to face Hearts.

With Patrick Roberts out injured for up to three weeks, and a Champions League play-off tie against Israeli side Hapoel Be’er Sheva looming, Rodgers wishes to integrate Sinclair as quickly as possible and he will make his home debut in the midweek Betfred Cup tie against Motherwell.

Sinclair, who passed a medical in Glasgow yesterday morning, is fully fit and ready to play after taking full part in Villa’s preseason and becomes the club’s third signing since Rodgers took over after the captures of Moussa Dembele and Kolo Toure.

Rodgers, meanwhile, insists he will grant the Betfred Cup with Celtic’s full respect.

The Parkhead club commence their involvement in the tournament with a tie against Motherwell in midweek that will bring him into contact with Mark McGhee — who once managed him at Reading.

While there will inevitably be changes as he seeks to rest and rehabilitate players following a punishing pre-season of niggles and Champions League qualifiers, Rodgers insists he regards the tournament as a priority.

He said: ‘We will be as strong as we possibly can. With the Final in November, it’s a great marker to put down in your season.

‘If we can get a trophy in there early, that’s good. We are here to win everything, as much as we possibly can.

‘We might need to make changes but they certainly won’t be wholesale changes.’

Of McGhee, he added: ‘Mark was excellent at Reading. It was his first job in management and he did a great job there.

‘Then he left after a couple years and went to big clubs like Leicester and Wolves.’

Motherwell’s last visit to Celtic Park saw them on the wrong end of a 7-0 thrashing as the home side finished the league in style.