New Celtic signing Luis Palma has been speaking about his chat with Emilio Izaguirre prior to making the move to Scotland.
Palma was announced as a Celtic player on Wednesday evening, joining on a five-year deal from Greek side Aris Thessaloniki.
He is the second Honduran to play for Celtic after the hugely-popular Emilio Izaguirre. The full-back had two spells at the club, including under current Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers.
As we covered last week, Palma sought out a recommendation from Izaguirre prior to making the move. Now he’s shared a little bit more about what they spoke about.
“Yes, I’ve spoken to Emilio a couple of days ago,” the winger told Celtic TV.
“We spoke about the club and now that I’m here I’d like to do as much or even more than what Emilio has done at the club.
MORE CELTIC STORIES
“We spoke about it [playing at Celtic Park] and had a good laugh about it because that’s what every player wants to do.
“You want to come in and play in front of a lot of fans. It’s something that I’m looking to try and do and I’m excited about it.”
Given his career in Glasgow, and the overall standing of Honduras in world football, it seems pretty likely that Izaguirre would have been a role model for Palma growing up.
Our new signing would have been just 10 or 11 when the full-back was hitting it up in his first spell in Glasgow. It’s something he even referenced in a later answer about the UEFA Champions League.
“I feel like the ten year old boy who was dreaming about playing in the Champions League,” he said.
“I looked at it when I was younger. I looked at Emilio and I looked at Celtic playing in Europe and now I’m excited that I get to do that myself.”
Before he can take part in those major European nights, Palma has the small matter of a derby against Rangers to prepare for.
He could be thrust straight in to the heat of battle at Ibrox. New signings can often flourish in these fixtures, almost like they’re that new in the door that they’re not hampered by the magnitude of the occasion.
Palma could be our secret weapon on Sunday if Rodgers chooses to unleash him.
In other news, the full-list of UEFA Champions League group stage sides has now been confirmed