Celtic forward Vakoun Issouf Bayo says he wants to use the example of £9million man Odsonne Edouard to forge a career at the club.
The Ivorian forward is widely regarded as Neil Lennon’s second choice striker after a string of appearances although he has still only started two matches. Bayo has a goal against Partick Thistle and a red card in Rennes to show for his early days in the Hoops but he reckons sensational star Odsonne Edouard had a similar start after joining.
“Odsonne is the number one striker and I know I have to work very hard if I want to play as the first striker,” Bayo told the official Celtic website.
“That will take time, just like it did with Odsonne. He also had to be patient to get his opportunities when he first arrived at Celtic.
“I know my time will come because I can see the progress I’ve made and that gives me great hope and confidence that I can do well for the team.
“It’s not going to be just handed to me. I need to work hard every day in training to show the manager that I can make a difference in the team and score goals. The competition drives us all and I am enjoying the challenge here because it is a great club.”
Bayo could start ahead of Edouard this Saturday
There seems to have been a general feeling developing over the past few weeks that Bayo isn’t good enough for Celtic. It has been built mainly on his substitute appearances in the matches against Hibernian and Livingston.
The 22-year-old was thrown on as a last resort in both matches and then not really given much service to work with. The truth is that we should judge Bayo on what he has done when he has started matches. He was a handful in both Celtic Park clashes against Hearts and Partick Thistle – and very unlucky not to register more than one goal.
This Saturday’s clash against Ross County could be the ideal time for him to play again. Edouard should be protected at all costs with Lazio to come next week and Bayo has already shown he can cope with games at Celtic Park.
Just hopefully the Hoops faithful continue to stick with him. He is only 22 after all.
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