If Victor Wanyama never plays for Celtic again then supporters can't say they didn't receive fair warning.
The clamour among the Hoops faithful for the Tottenham star to return to Glasgow will remain until his future with the Premier League side is resolved.
And in Neil Lennon 's defence, he is doing all he can to play down any notion of a potential Celtic reunion with a player he signed for £900,000 from Beerschot in 2011.
But the Irishman can't help but admit the all-action Kenyan remains "in his thoughts", seven years after he joined Southampton for £12m.
Speculation was rampant last summer over a potential transfer and that was only heightened when his move to Club Brugge bit the dust.
Fraser Forster's revelation that Wanyama had instructed his pal to "keep his shirt warm for a bit", after the big Englishman secured his former team-mate's No.67 upon his own Parkhead return did little to quell the speculation.
And proof that Wanyama fever has the club's supporters on tenterhooks was there for all to see during November's AGM as a move for the Spurs star was a hottest topic during the Q&A session.
Lennon, for the third time since last summer's transfer rumour swirl, addressed the possibility of a return for the Kenyan enforcer in the aftermath of his side's win over Partick Thistle.
But the Irishman insists any potential deal for a player he helped develop remains a transfer long shot.
He said: “He’s in my thoughts but could we afford him? I doubt it very much.
“The problem is where to fit him in. I don’t think that’s going to be an option."
The financial aspect is something only Celtic can answer but Lennon's concern over where Wanyama would play would be answered very quickly.
Scott Brown and Callum McGregor are the perfect partnership for the Premiership champions but both have played non-stop over the past five years.
Olivier Ntcham, for all his many qualities, isn't the type of player who would strike fear into the opposition like the man who made his name with stunning displays against Barcelona.
Wanyama wouldn't be short of opportunities.
And Lennon's style of breakneck football suits his former pupil's game to perfection. The ex-Southampton man's only weakness is, at times, his inability to keep possession but that's not a deal breaker as it would have been under Brendan Rodgers.
But more than anything else it's Wanyama's ability to shine in a 3-5-2 that could help give Celtic an upper hand in the title race.
The former Celtic star is rightly lauded for his Champions League heroics in green and white but perhaps his finest 90 minutes for the club came in the dominant 3-0 win over Rangers in May 2012.
Wanyama started as part of a back three alongside Charlie Mulgrew and Glenn Loovens and dominated from start to finish.
And that defiant display still holds relevance all these years later as Lennon and John Kennedy look to come up with a gameplan to stop Rangers in their tracks.
Steven Gerrard and his trusted lieutenant Michael Beale have got it spot on in the last two fixtures against their rivals and their win at Parkhead has blown the title race wide open.
But it would be foolish to bet against Lennon coming up with an antidote before the side's meet again on March 15 at Ibrox.
It's only five months since the Hoops boss was lauded for his tactical acumen as Celtic left Rangers paralysed during a convincing 2-0 win in Govan.
Lennon even hinted at a possible different approach as he introduced Nir Bitton and Ntcham in the closing stages of the defeat last month in a bid to counteract Rangers' threat.
But Wanyama is a different proposition entirely and a defensive reshuffle could allow full-backs Greg Taylor and Jeremie Frimpong to flourish.
Lennon is doing little to ramp up the rumour mill but a return for one of his best ever signings could change everything in the quest to land nine-in-a-row.
