IT may have taken a while, but Neil Lennon now has his man, and Celtic’s transfer activity in this summer window is finally up and running. If the Celtic manager has his way, the signing of David Turnbull will also signal the opening of the floodgates for a wave of new arrivals.

Turnbull will join his new teammates on their pre-season trip to Austria and Switzerland on Monday after completing his £3.25m move from Motherwell last night, putting pen to paper on a four-year deal, and he may not be the only new-boy checking in at Glasgow Airport.

“[I hope to bring in] maybe half a dozen,” Lennon said.

“It’s important because we have priorities - the league and hopefully also Champions League qualification which would set the season up for us.

“We are working very hard to find the right quality of player within our wage bracket to make us better.

“We are certainly looking to strengthen in defensive areas. We also have to be aware there may be bids for one or two of our players. Some players may leave, and we are on top of that as well.

“We are hoping to get two or three in by [July 4th, the deadline for European competition]. Hopefully we can get them out to Austria and integrate them into the squad as quickly as possible.

“Ideally, as a club, I’d like us to be involved in 60-odd games next season – because then you’re being pretty successful again - but without having to rely on key individuals making that many appearances. That’s where the squad plays its part

“These qualifiers come along really quickly, and they are really important. It’s important we freshen the squad up with quality.

“That’s exactly what is good about David. It was a big, big, plus in his favour as far as I was concerned. I think we need more goals from midfield and hopefully David will provide them.”

That Lennon considers the capture of Turnbull ahead of fierce competition from English Premier League side Norwich City as a major coup was written all over his face yesterday, as the Celtic boss wore the grin of the cat that got the cream.

When you listen to him wax lyrical about the Scotland under-21 international and what he feels he can bring to his team in terms of an attacking threat, it is clear he has been a driving force in Celtic pushing the boat out somewhat to land the precocious talent.

“He’s a [Stuart] Armstrong type,” Lennon said. “I felt we were lacking that a bit.

“I thought last season we played a lot in front of teams and I think he’ll go beyond. I also think he’s a good finisher once he gets into position.

“Technically, he’s proficient with both feet and manipulates the ball very well.

“It’s always the sign of a good player that he constantly appears to have time and space on the ball. Amid the hurly burly they appear to slow the game down, but they don’t really. It’s just his composure.

“His stats are excellent. For someone so young, to explode onto the scene that way, he was too good a talent for us to ignore.

“It’s great to get the first one over the line, [and] a bit of freshness into the squad too.”

Fickleness isn’t a quality that is exclusive to Celtic supporters, but one that inflicts fans of any club. With the tribal nature of the sport, it’s only natural.

That is why during the twists and turns of the Turnbull transfer saga, he has found himself being hailed as the next big thing, to not being good enough for the club, to being labelled as a money-grabber right through to finally being praised for a sensible decision based on footballing grounds. And no doubt he would have been called a wide range of colourful names in-between had he dared to check his social media accounts.

But all of that is now firmly in the past, and Lennon hopes he will be welcomed with open arms by the Celtic fans despite his brief dalliance with Norwich.

“I wouldn’t have thought there would be a problem with the fans,” he said.

“I think once the fans are aware he’s chosen Celtic over a Premier League club they will be very impressed with that as well.

“Listen, you’ve got to take it from David’s point of view as well and his representative’s point of view. They’ve got to look at all of the options available before they come to conclusions.

“I know we’re a big club and a big draw. But there are other mitigating circumstances that maybe we don’t know about, that might’ve prolonged the signing.

“There were a few twists and turns. But in the end, I think the player himself decided we were the best option for him, which we agreed with obviously.

“To choose us over a Premiership club is quite a statement from our point of view.

“We’ve been tracking him for a while. He’s a fantastically gifted young Scottish player, so we want to try and get the best out of him in the coming years.”