Adam Montgomery has told of the vital pre-match message given to him by Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou on Thursday night.
The Hoops lost 4-3 to Real Betis in their opening Europa League group stage match. However, there were plenty of positives to take despite the result, with the performance of Lennoxtown graduate Montgomery one of them.
Indeed, the newly-capped Scotland U21 international put in another energetic display as he continues to pay back the faith placed in him by the Celtic boss. He’s now played nine matches for the Hoops first-team this term – more than many may have expected.
And as he reflected on his performance in Seville, Montgomery told of the key message delivered to him by Postecoglou before he ran onto the pitch.
As quoted by the Scotsman, Montgomery said: “I had been involved against Midtjylland and Alkmaar in the previous rounds so I had experience of European football. Betis is another level, though. They are one of the teams you see when you are watching La Liga, competing with the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona.
“You are there to do a job, though, and it was fantastic to be given a start. The manager told me just to be myself, to forget the occasion and focus on playing my normal game so that is exactly what I did.
“I think I did okay too in terms of that. I tried to get on the ball whenever I could and make good use of it when I did.”
Adam Montgomery does Celtic chances no harm whatsoever
Montgomery was playing in a more advanced role in Betis than he’s normally used to. However, for his age, he’s showing superb versatility and in high-pressure environments too.
Betis wasn’t the first time Postecoglou has thrown Montgomery in against tough opposition. He featured for the vast majority of the Europa League playoff second leg in Alkmaar. Not to mention he came on at Ibrox with Celtic chasing the game too.
Postecoglou is certainly sticking to the mantra of “if you’re good enough, you’re old enough”. He isn’t just giving the youngsters minutes here or there either. For players with the talent of Montgomery, they’re getting an opportunity to win a regular place in the side.
As we continue to discuss the rise of the youngster, you have to look at what this does for Lennoxtown as a whole. The entire academy should be receiving a massive mental boost from the new manager’s approach. Montgomery’s sudden success is a clear sign of what’s on offer if you have both the ability and mentality.
Granted, Montgomery isn’t part of Celtic’s strongest XI yet. Or not officially it seems. Still the Scottish youngster is having to deal with bit-part roles. But that’s to be expected so early into his Celtic career.
Every time he goes onto the pitch he impressed both the supporters and his manager. Fair to say then he’s doing everything right in the early stages of his Hoops career.
In other news, Report: Celtic could bank £4m from Ryan Christie deal
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