Kristoffer Ajer was a standout today against Rangers, but perhaps even more so after this gesture.
The Norwegian was at the heart of Celtic’s defensive wall. Despite Dedryck Boyata going off injured and having to deal with several troubling crosses, Ajer left nothing on the pitch and helped Celtic to success.
The 2-1 win was in large part down to a block he made late on. Joe Worrall should’ve stabbed home an open goal, but Ajer got there first to make sure it was dealt with.
But just as beautiful as the block was his post-match gesture to a young fan. You can watch the video below, which has been caught by a supporter and put on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/hunskelper_____/status/1112364635850768384
Class act in every sense
For those who can’t see the video, it shows a young fan racing on to the pitch before being rushed off by a steward. Ajer spots it, and runs to catch up with the youngster to hand him his jersey.
It’s certainly a moment the young Celt won’t ever forget. And it shows what kind of a man Ajer is to spot it and make sure the supporter was cheered up as he was ushered off.
But as for his performance, that was just as heroic. Nobody frustrated the Rangers attackers more than the big Norway international, as he bossed the back-line with confidence and ease.
He made several terrific challenges as the game went on, and never put a foot wrong on the ball either. His distribution from the back was consistently sharp, whilst his raking runs through the Rangers midfield didn’t once end in him being dispossessed.
Ajer has been showing plenty of maturity at Celtic over the last 18 months. He’s become a central figure to our success this season, whilst his development has been going swimmingly too.
He could be the one constant this summer at the heart of our defence. Boyata is in the final weeks of his contract, whilst Filip Benkovic will head back to Leicester. Only Ajer, in terms of top quality center-backs, is guaranteed to stay next season.
Performances like this, however, keep us safe in the knowledge that we’re keeping the best of the trio.
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