Watch a beaming Alistair Johnston explain his love for Celtic and the fans after contract renewal

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Alistair Johnston’s decision to commit to Celtic for the next five years is one that has gone down well with the fans.

Johnston signed a new five year deal and it was announced on the day of Celtic’s 2024 AGM as the feelgood factor surrounding the club grows.

The Canadian right back has been in fine form under Brendan Rodgers and even though he still have four years of his current deal to run, Celtic have rewarded Johnston for his commitment and form in the Hoops first team over the last two years.

Speaking prior to Celtic beating Hearts yesterday, Johnston was on Sky Sports talking about his love for the club and how Rodgers pushed his limits at Parkhead compared to Ange Postecoglou.

Alistair Johnston admits he will stay at Celtic for ‘the next five years’

Johnston told Sky Sports, “The last two years at Celtic have been a dream come true. Nothing compares to playing for this club. It’s my home.

“It’s a great feeling (to sign a new deal). It shows that the club value me and that feeling is something you definitely want to feel as a player.

“It’s a really special place when you walk out of 60,000 at Celtic Park. And you hear the roar when you play in massive matches and won some trophies and the plan is to continue that over the next five years.”

How Brendan Rodgers ‘pushed’ Alistair Johnston’s limits compared to Ange Postecolgou at Celtic

“I’ve developed a tonne, honestly,”, continued Johnston, “From walking into the door and Ange telling me how to be an inverted wingback, that was a learning curve.

“And then, finally, after six months after getting the hang of it he left then Brendan came in and I was back to being a more traditional fullback but still with the licence to roll inside.

“It’s definitely something that I’ve been tested both tactically and physically to push my limits and that’s something I have enjoyed.

“The coaches have unbelievelable with me in terms of understanding what skills and attributes I have and the gaffer has been great for me in terms of giving me a licence to go forward.”

In 80 appearances for Celtic, Johnston has scored six goals and created 14 assists picking up five trophies into the bargain.

A treble-winner, the 26-year-old has already written his name into the history books and will go down as one of the best right backs in the club’s history if he continues to progress and stay at Celtic.

Already popular amongst the Celtic supporters, Johnston’s comments here and the pride in how he speaks about the club will just endear him further to a fanbase that already adore him in the short time Johnston has been at the club.