Chris Sutton says people were too quick to write off “forgotten” Celtic summer signing

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Chris Sutton knows a Celtic-level striker when he sees on, and Giorgos Giakoumakis is fitting the bill for the Premier League and SPL winner.

Greek striker Giakoumakis has come into the team and hit form at a vital time. Without Ajeti, Maeda or Kyogo to call upon right now, the former VVV-Venlo man, and Eredivisie top scorer, has scored twice in as many starts.

With each finish, his confidence seems to be growing. Well-taken goals at vital times are his forté, and he’s shown excellent grit and determination in pressing and causing trouble for defenders. Chris Sutton probably sees a little of his own game in the Greece international.

Giakoumakis came under heavy criticism earlier in the season. Though he started brightly against St Johnstone, with a well-taken goal, his next game was less productive. A late penalty miss against Livingston saw the Hoops drop points at home.

Injuries and a lack of pre-season hampered the summer signing. However, Chris Sutton believes Giakoumakis is proving his worth now, when it really matters.

Sutton, in his column for the Daily Record, said: “It’s been a tough beginning for him at Celtic and he’s not had much luck. He had issues when he arrived, he got injured in the warm up against Raith Rovers and then he missed the penalty against Livingston.

“It was the worst possible start for him and some people were a bit too quick to write him off. This is a player who scored a ton of goals in Holland, and it wasn’t for a team that would have been dominating play and creating lots of chances.

“There’s no doubt he had a rotten start in Scotland but fair play to him. Giakoumakis has got himself fit and he looks determined to make an impact.”

Chris Sutton is right; people were far too quick to write off Celtic striker Giorgos Giakoumakis

We’re all guilty of judging players too quickly. If you’re old enough to remember the initial reception to Henrik Larsson in the Hoops, you’ll know this.

Given the high stakes this season, and the non-existent margin for error at the top of the table, we need players getting out the blocks quickly. The sudden and sensational impact of players like Liel Abada and Kyogo Furuhashi put inadvertent pressure on everyone else.

Thankfully, Matt O’Riley and Reo Hatate have started quickly. As have Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi, both of whom have looked very promising.

Patience, though, is required. For Giorgos Giakoumakis, his first six months at the club were rough. They were stop-start, and he made sacrifices to get himself in match fitness now.

It’s paying off. He won’t top the league charts this season, but he’s making enough of an impact at a crucial time to suggest real quality. That’s as important as anything else.

Chris Sutton is right to point out that on this occasion, plenty of us jumped the gun on Giakoumakis.

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