The father of Celtic defender Stephen Welsh has opened up on the progress of the player and what it means for his family.
Welsh is enjoying opportunities under new manager Ange Postecoglou and has conducted himself well in the early stages of the season.
Despite losing his place to Carl Starfelt and Cameron Carter-Vickers, the 21-year-old is still very much part of the first-team squad and is certain to make more appearances this term.
Welsh’s father, also called Stephen, is obviously immensely proud and picked out his August goal at Celtic Park as a highlight, telling Football Scotland: “It does make it extra special, watching him. You can tell by his reaction when he scored against Hearts how much it meant to him.
“You can imagine it was quite an emotional day for all of us, to paraphrase that Tommy Burns quote, Stephen is a lucky one, a lucky supporter to find himself on the pitch and live the dream.
“He went out and bought two season tickets on his own, to give to the family. So other members of the family can get to the games. I thought that was a nice gesture, a touch of generosity. I can tell you they’re getting passed around a lot at the moment!”
Welsh Sr. goes on to explain that the youngster has been a Celtic fan all his days, even during a period when he was being taken to Partick Thistle games.
The defender continues to make progress on the pitch and was recently named Scotland U21 captain, so his leadership qualities are impressing coaches too.
There has been a lot of pressure on his shoulders of late, but having signed a four-year contract in April, there’s loads of time for him to establish himself as a regular.
In other news, 17-goal Maeda will surely be one of the players on Celtic’s January Japan radar.
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