It is not rare for Celtic and the Rangers to be involved in a race to sign the same player. This time around, it looks like an English centre-back has caught the eye of both Glasgow clubs.

For Celtic, the need for a centre-back has been quite clear for a while. Cameron Carter-Vickers will be coming off another long-term injury.

Auston Trusty and Liam Scales were the starting duo at centre-back for the majority of the previous campaign. But the dual left-footed combination might not be the best fit.

So far, we have already seen Celtic being linked with centre-backs like Zinedin Smajlovic and Oskar Wojcik this summer. Now, a 21-year-old English defender, currently establishing himself in Swedish football, has been added to that list as well.

The same player is seemingly on the radar of the Rangers as well. They have a new manager in place in the form of Derek McInnes. And the Ibrox side will be looking to improve drastically, having finished third in the league last season.

According to a report from Football Insider, Celtic and Rangers are among multiple clubs keeping tabs on Michael Parker. Anderlecht and Udinese are also said to be interested.

Parker currently plays for Swedish Allsvenskan club Orgryte. He joined the club last February.

So, Parkher still has multiple years left on his contract. So, Celtic or any other suitor would have to pay his full transfer valuation if they want to sign him this summer.

Parker spent time in the youth ranks of multiple highly regarded clubs in English football. At one point or another, he was on the books at West Bromwich Albion, Huddersfield Town and Burnley.

He was not able to establish himself at any of those clubs though. As a result, it looked like the youngster's career was on a downward trajectory, even at 21 years of age.

Parker took a risk earlier this year though. While it might have been safer to drop down a level or two in the English footballing pyramid, he chose to move to Sweden instead, joining Orgryte.

READ MORE: Striker Ready to Reject Other Offers for Celtic Return

That is a move that is paying dividends already. Just a few months on from that move, it looks like Celtic, Rangers and several other clubs across Europe have taken notice of his performances.

Now, it remains to be seen if he will choose to leave Orgryte or decide to stay put and develop his game further at the senior level, before aiming to move elsewhere.

Moving right now would be a risk. But then again, so was the previous one. And it did pay off quite handsomely.

Roundtablesports is Free to join! You can post your own thoughts, comment on articles, and start conversations with our Roundtable Writers. Scroll up to the top of the page and click 'Join'.

Download the FREE Roundtable APP, and get even easier access to your favourite teams and news!