Celtic appear to be pushing on quickly with their succession plan to replace Brendan Rodgers as manager as Neil Lennon's agent arrived at their Lennoxtown training complex.
Martin Reilly could be seen driving into the training ground shortly after Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell.
Celtic play Hearts on Wednesday night before returning to Edinburgh on Saturday for a William Hill Scottish Cup quarter-final against Hibernian, the club Lennon left a month ago.
Former Celtic striker Chris Sutton has criticised Rodgers over the timing of his expected departure to Leicester City.
Sutton told BT Sport's Twitter account: "The timing of it stinks. He's going to a club who are playing for absolutely nothing - they are not going to get relegated, they are not going to get into Europe - and I am really disappointed.
"I think there are a lot of Celtic fans out there as well who will feel let down. This is the job which Brendan said was his dream job. So why is he going now to a club who have nothing to play for?
"It looks like Neil Lennon will get the opportunity and I wish him well.
"In terms of how Brendan has left, he has left the club in a tough situation - short-term loans, losing the centre-back pairing (Dedryck Boyata and Filip Benkovic) and the right-back (Mikael Lustig) in the summer. There's a big overhaul in the summer which needs doing."
Celtic confirmed this morning that they have given Rodgers permission to speak to Leicester about their managerial vacancy.
The Foxes are looking for a successor to Claude Puel, who was sacked on Sunday.
A Celtic statement read: "Celtic Football Club today confirmed that it has been approached by Leicester City FC to speak to Brendan Rodgers with regards to their current managerial vacancy.
"Brendan has indicated to the club that this is an opportunity he wishes to investigate further and therefore, very reluctantly, the club has granted him permission to speak to Leicester City."
Celtic, it seems, are resigned to losing Rodgers, with reports claiming they have already lined up his successor in the shape of Neil Lennon.
Another Northern Irishman, he is out of work since his departure from Hibs last month and could be in line to return to Parkhead five years after leaving the Hoops.
Reports suggest Celtic are to open talks with Lennon, 47, about taking over until the end of the season.
Rodgers, 46, has been in charge at Parkhead since 2016 and led Celtic to the title twice, while they are currently eight points clear of second-placed Rangers.
However, the former Swansea and Liverpool boss is understood to want to return to the Premier League at some stage.
Rangers boss Steven Gerrard believes the lure of the Premier League was too much for Brendan Rodgers to turn down.
Gerrard's former Liverpool manager looks to be on his way out of Celtic after opening talks with Leicester.
Rangers, who are locked in a title battle with Celtic, held a media conference on Tuesday when the stories were put to their manager.
Gerrard said: "I've just been made aware that he's in talks with Leicester. For us, we just see how that pans out really.
"It seems (the lure of Premier League has been a big factor) otherwise he'd have declined the opportunity to talk to Leicester.
"My focus right now is Rangers and we've got a big fixture tomorrow against Dundee. That's my main concern right now but we'll keep an eye on how it pans out across the road.
"I'm not really surprised by the timing because these things happen. Brendan has done ever so well at Celtic over the years so it's no surprise that other clubs are watching him and wanting to acquire his services. He's done a really good job and I've worked with Brendan so I know he's a very good coach."
Puel was fired in the wake of Saturday's 4-1 home defeat by Crystal Palace, with Leicester slipping to 12th in the table.
The Foxes face Brighton on Tuesday evening still looking to pick up their first win of 2019, a miserable run which also saw them knocked out of the FA Cup at League Two Newport.
As well as two league titles, Celtic have also won three Scottish League Cups and two Scottish Cups under Rodgers.
If appointed the Northern Irishman will become Leicester's third permanent manager since they sacked title-winning boss Claudio Ranieri in February 2017.
