It was a busy summer for Celtic’s two main full-backs last season.
Alistair Johnston was involved in Canada’s Gold Cup journey, while Greg Taylor decided not to renew his Celtic contract and left the club for PAOK on a free.
Johnston and Taylor struck up a great relationship at Parkhead and helped Celtic dominate under the Ange Postecoglou era and latterly Brendan Rodgers.
Sadly, their time on the pitch together ended with an agonising defeat to Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup final, with Johnston missing a vital spot-kick in the penalty shootout.
Celtic star Johnston on seeking advice from pal Taylor
However, Johnston had to dust himself down and prepare for the biggest day of his life in the summer – his wedding with partner Peyton.
And he admits seeking advice from Taylor about whether a big game or a poor result can be detrimental or not when it comes to enjoying your big day.
Taylor went through the same last year when he got married a week before Celtic’s huge Scottish Cup final against Rangers.
Johnston revealed at his Friday press conference: “I talked actually a lot to Greg about it because he had done something similar the year before. He had his wedding the week following the cup final.
“I asked him, ‘Does a result kind of really affect the wedding?’.
“He’s like, ‘Look, once the season’s done and you’re fully focused on your wedding, it’s the biggest day of your life’. It’s exactly that.
“Once I got there, saw my friends, family I pretty quickly forgot about football. You remember that there are still more important things in life, your family, your wife.
“It was nice to kind of put the failure of that cup final behind me and kind of really just reset, focus on the people that were there and then get ready for the internationals.
“Once we got through that tournament, I remembered, ‘Okay, we’ve got something to come back and try and win back when I get back into Scotland’.
“So I think there’s an extra level of motivation now. You can see it through the entire group.
“There’s definitely a bit of a burning passion there to get back what we think is our trophy. So that’s something that we have a challenge of this year.”
Johnston will ‘seriously miss’ Taylor at Celtic
Before Taylor’s confirmed departure from Celtic amid the speculation he may leave, Johnston told the press that his left-back counterpart’s quality is often ‘overlooked’.
Moreover, the Canadian said Taylor’s presence off the pitch would also be missed massively, which Celtic will have to deal with this season and beyond without him.
Johnston said back in February this year: “He (Taylor) loves the club, and he loves being here. Obviously with Kieran (Tierney) coming in, it makes things a little more difficult. I won’t speak for Greg, but he is a really good player.
“I think that he’s someone that often gets overlooked with how good he is, and how much he impacts what we’re able to do on the pitch with his ability to come inside, how good he is on the ball.
“If this is his last year here, he’s going to be seriously missed not only on the pitch, but off the pitch. He’s such a massive character and part of this team.
“But you have to understand he wants to play week in, week out. You’re bringing in Kieran to play week in, week out too. So it isn’t an easy situation. But whatever happens, he is going to give his best for this club.”
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
