Hassan played just 126 minutes at this summer’s World Cup, but it was enough to send his reputation rocketing.
He did not feature in any of Egypt’s Group G matches with head coach Hossam Hassan later revealing it was down to a paperwork delay in registering the former France youth international.
The 24-year-old was finally unleashed as a second-half substitute in Egypt’s last-32 penalty shootout win over Australia – before delivering a standout performance against Lionel Messi’s Argentina.
A left-footer deployed on the right flank, Hassan started the last-16 match and set up Mostafa Zico’s goal, skipping past Enzo Fernandez before drilling in a precise delivery to help put Egypt 2-0 up.
However, it was the Egypt’s infamous disallowed goal in their agonising 3-2 defeat by the defending champions that showcased Hassan’s direct running and dynamic dribbling qualities.
Bursting forward from the right-back area, he evaded two challenges in a 60-yard run before threading a pass through for Mohamed Salah, who teed up Zico.
Across his two World Cup performances, Hassan registered nine dribble attempts at a rate of 6.4 per 90 minutes.
If Celtic had hoped to keep their interest in the winger under the radar, that prospect was blown out of the water with his impact on football’s biggest stage.
Hassan was born in France and represented Les Bleus at Under-17 and Under-18 level before switching allegiances and making his senior international debut for Egypt, his father’s birthplace, earlier this year.
He started his club career in central France at Chateauroux, featuring initially for their B team and then the senior team in the lower leagues.
A move to Spain’s Villarreal followed in 2020 where he turned out for their B team, then went on loan to Mirandes before returning to the Yellow Submarine for his first taste of top-flight football in La Liga.
Another loan, to Sporting Gijon, followed and Hassan stayed in the second tier before a move to Oviedo in 2024.
He helped the club win promotion in his first season, scoring four goals and setting up three, but the going was far tougher in La Liga last term.
Hassan contributed three assists and couldn’t muster a goal in 37 appearances, 20 of those from the start, as Oviedo finished bottom to immediately drop back down.
His xG (expected goals) of 0.15 last season hints at a paucity of clear chances in a team that were the lowest scorers in the division by a distance.
Kasper Hogh is an out and-out-striker, while fellow new arrival Camilo Duran, who can play wide or through the middle, is left-footed but has been deployed on the right wing in Celtic’s opening two games of the season.
That right-wing berth would likely become Hassan’s, with Duran shifting over to the left in place of Yang Hyun-jun.
Manager O’Neill has also hinted at playing two up top, which would mean a Hogh-Duran front pairing and Hassan providing ammunition on the right with Yang on the left.
That would give Celtic’s attack a similar look to that of the Gordon Strachan era, when Shunsuke Nakamura and either Aiden McGeady or Shaun Maloney operated as inverted wingers, supporting a central pair of strikers – typically Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink with Giorgios Samaras or Scott McDonald.
Celtic’s link-up play really stretched Kilmarnock in the 5-1 weekend win, with hat-trick hero Hogh coming deep and going long to combine with his team-mates.
The wingers and midfielders got into advanced positions throughout, with three different players providing assists for Hogh’s goals.
Adding Hassan would offer Celtic a fresh and exciting option in a fluid attack.
