new bhoy paddy is in paradise
David Friel
AS a teenager, Paddy McCourt would stand inside Celtic Park and pay homage to Hoops hero Henrik Larsson. Back then, he wondered what it would feel like to pull on the Celtic strip himself one day. That moment arrived today.
The 24-year-old Irish winger, who completed his move from Derry City last week, was paraded in front of the assembled media this morning and was in Paradise as he finally realised a lifelong ambition.
“It feels fantastic to be here,” said McCourt, who will wear No.20 for Celtic. “It’s something that I’ve always dreamt about since I was a young boy and to get the chance to come and play for Celtic is unbelievable.
“My first trip to Celtic Park was about 10 years ago. It was a game against Motherwell and Henrik Larsson scored. It was great and it was a dream of mine back then to play for Celtic.
“I was a bit nervous when I found out about Celtic’s interest. I wasn’t nervous about joining, I was just nervous about getting everything completed.
“It all happened so fast. I got the call last Wednesday saying that club were after me and by the Thursday night, I’d had my medical and signed for Celtic.
“Getting everything sorted was a massive relief and it’s only in the last couple of days that I’ve been able to enjoy it. Now I can’t wait to get started.
“At the moment, I’m not looking past pre-season. I want to get in there, get a good pre-season under my belt and then take it from there. Hopefully, I can force my way into the manager’s plans and play as many games as possible.”
Celtic supporters have been scouring YouTube for clips of McCourt in recent days and will have been impressed with his pace, trickery and eye for goal.
Predominately a wide player, McCourt is happy playing on the right or left. He can also operate off the front two and his initial aim is to put pressure on Celtic’s current playmakers – Aiden McGeady and Shunsuke Nakamura.
McCourt said: “I’m player who likes to take defenders, attack and cause problems for the opposition. Hopefully, I can create and score a lot of goals and make an impact.
“I know all about the players here. I’ve always supported Celtic and I watched all the games live on television last season. Aiden McGeady and Shunsuke Nakamura have been Scottish Players of Year for the last two seasons, so I know how hard it will be to get in the team.
“The manager must have seen me play and seen something that he liked. At the moment, Aiden and Naka have the wide berths, but there are a lot of games over the course of a season and I want to make as much of a contribution as possible.
“I want to work hard and hopefully take my chance when I get it. I’m really looking forward to teaming up with the players and I’m preparing for a hard pre-season.
“I know the demands will be a lot higher. The tempo will be faster and I’ll need to improve my fitness, because the SPL is stronger than the Irish league.
"Back home, the standard has improved a lot over the last five years, so it’s maybe not as big a step up coming to Scotland than it would have been eight or nine years ago, but I’ll be working hard to improve.”
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