Ben Davies likely came about as close as a player can to signing for Celtic before going elsewhere.

He was all set for the move up north to help a collapsing Neil Lennon side but in the final hours an injury-hit Liverpool came in with an offer Davies thought was too good to turn down.

The jump from a middling Championship club to one of the best sides in the world perhaps unsurprisingly was a step too far for Davies as he failed to make a single competitive appearance for Liverpool.

This included the likes of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho being played ahead of him throughout the rest of the 2020-21 season. With a lengthy contract signed and little hope of a permanent move, Davies went out on loan for the 2021-22 season to Sheffield United.

Davies - being a rare left-footed centre-back - played on the left of Sheffield United’s back three in the Championship and was able to show he is still a very capable player.

His heatmap below shows a player willing to progress high into the opposition half and help build-up play.

Celtic Way:

Davies might well draw some animosity from the Celtic support for the manner in which he went to Liverpool but, from a data perspective, he still shows up well as a modern ball-playing centre-back that would be well suited to Ange Postecoglou’s system. He also brings the added benefit of being left-footed, which can make it easier to open up the field of play when in possession.

Across just about every passing metric in the percentile rankings, he ranks extremely well and would look right at home in a possession-dominant Celtic side.

Defensively, he is a great ground dueller and uses his high mobility to read the game and cut out dangerous passes and begin transitions.

Celtic Way:

At six-feet tall he tends to struggle a bit aerially but we did see a similarly poor attribute in Cameron Carter-Vickers in the EFL Championship that completely reversed once he moved north of the border.

Despite his height, Davies offers a strong aerial threat at set-pieces which likely means he’s utilising good movement to create space for himself for headed chances.

Overall, Davies has the right profile if he is on the market for a relatively low fee. Celtic have already scouted him fully and will know just about everything they need to know about him as a result.

In this regard he would represent a fairly safe signing - but one that would need to win fans back onside due to what happened in 2021 if any reported links come to fruition.