GLASGOW, June 28, 2008 (AFP) - Scottish champions Celtic on Saturday ruled out a move by their Japanese star Shunsuke Nakamura to Serie A newcomers Bologna.

The Scottish press had reported that the Italian club had made a swoop for the 30-year-old player.

'We want to build a great team at Bologna and the first new face I want on board is Nakamura,' club president Alfredo Cazzola told the Scottish Daily Record.

'We have already formalised our offer to Celtic, so they know the conditions of the proposed transfer.'

But Celtic later dismissed the speculation as 'erroneous reports.'

A Celtic spokesman said: 'We've never heard of the representative who has claimed Bologna has made an offer for Shunsuke Nakamura.

'We have not received any offer from Bologna or from any other club. In any case Naka is delighted to be staying with Celtic and that is what he will be doing.'

Nakamura is no stranger to Italian football. He played for Reggina before signing a three-year deal worth 2.5 million pounds (5 million dollars) with Celtic in the summer of 2005.

'We are waiting to hear back from Celtic about the offer once they've discussed it with the player,' said Cazzola.

'We hope they'll give us permission to speak to Nakamura. If they do we'll contact him to discuss the move.'

The Japan international, who has helped Celtic to three consecutive league titles, was last month linked with a move to the Japanese first division side Yokohama.

Bologna won promotion to Italy's top flight earlier this month after beating Serie B rivals Pisa 1-0 on the final day of the season.