Ange Postecoglou has talked up the hard work being put in by Giorgos Giakoumakis as he tries to reinvent himself at Celtic in 2022.
It’s been a quick start to the new year from the Celtic summer signing. After a struggling first 4 months in which he only managed 1 goal fo the club and numerous injury problems, he’s finally getting some momentum going.
Goals against Alloa Athletic and Hearts in his first 2 starts of 2022 has seriously increased the striker’s morale. It comes only 3 months after he was being highly criticised for missing a crucial penalty against Livingston at Celtic Park [The Herald].
However, Ange has lauded how he’s responded to that as he outlined the work he’s put in to get himself into this poisition.
As quoted by the Daily Record, Postecoglou said: “That’s what I mean about character and mentality. He [Giakoumakis] is another one who had a tough first half of the year for sure. He worked hard to get himself fit during the little break we had. We gave the guys a few days off, but he kept going along with James [Forrest] and Chris Jullien to be ready and I thought he was great.
“He scored not just a great goal, but worked awfully hard and he had to because unfortunately at the moment we don’t have somebody to give him a bit of a breather towards the end of the game. He is showing people why I brought him. He has a presence about him and in the box he can score goals.
“That’s his strength.It’s a testament to his character. I said after he missed the penalty against Livingston that that’s the burden you carry being the No.9 here at Celtic. You are expected to be here for the big moments and score goals and that’s what he wants. He didn’t shy away after that happened, worked hard to get himself fit and be ready.”
Giorgos Giakoumakis could be a huge Celtic hero in less than a week
When we knew that Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi were going to be missing for these big games, there was huge concern over our lack of options. After all, Giakoumakis simply hadn’t shown anything that made you believe he was primed to take advantage of his big opportunity.
But that’s all changed. The fans are starting to warm to him after bouncing back strongly from his penalty miss in October. He now has 2 goals in 2 games to his name and 3 goals in 4 starts overall. His numbers are actually pretty impressive when you take into consideration the challenges he’s faced.
We’ve been hammering home how big an opportunity this phase of games is for the player too. After netting at Alloa, he had 3 league games on the agenda in Hearts, Dundee United, and Rangers respectively. Netting at Tynecastle is a superb start, and with it being the winner it’s even more of a boost for him.
However, it’s just a start. We could be sitting here in less than a week’s time with him having also scored against United and Rangers. If he manages that, you can’t sit here and say Maeda or Kyogo should just be thrown back in. The jersey will belong to Giakoumakis until his form wavers.
Of course, that’s only if he can keep the momentum going. He’s showing good movement, strong hold-up play, and a keen eye for goal so far this year. All 3 of his goals for the club have been top-class finishes too. Another against Dundee United will only ingratiate himself into the supporter’s hearts further.
Hopefully, we’re about to experience the biggest week of Giakoumakis’ Celtic career so far.
In other news, Yet another loss to Celtic has left Hearts fans infuriated with their tactics
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