Adam Idah foolishly believed that his help for fellow new signing Nicolas Idah up at Pittodrie earlier this month meant that the two players’ debut draw had helped Celtic to a respectable result away from home.
He quickly found out that was not the case, as the Celtic cause was rocked by a subsequent draw last Saturday, this time against Kilmarnock at Celtic Park. In the most predictable result of any set of Scottish Premiership games, an informed Hearts squad conceded five times without answering, and Celtic now find themselves five points behind the Rangers.
If Celtic had won these two matches, as we should have, we would have been one point down and would have been going into Motherwell knowing that a victory would put us back atop the standings. At least one of our recent additions, Callum McGregor, had doubts last weekend about whether the summer’s project acquisitions and the two January recruits had truly come to terms with the burden of playing for Celtic and winning every game.
The Irish international striker, who is now on loan from Norwich City, says he’s got it and acknowledges that life at Celtic is very different from life at Norwich. Adam Idah believes he now understands the extreme strain that Celtic is under.
“You need to be prepared and have the necessary skills to handle it,” Idah stated, according to Daily Record. “I am aware that it is prevalent here. But you play the game for that reason. Obviously, Norwich and Celtic are very different from one another. When we drew in my first game at Aberdeen, I thought, “Well, that’s a decent result.” However, I now realize that it wasn’t! Given the size of the club, the demand is appropriate.
“It’s nice that everything in this city revolves around football as I explore more of it. It’s competitive, but because the club is so large, there is a weekly expectation to succeed. I’m not used to it, I’ll admit. It’s not like in England, where a draw might occur occasionally.
“You have to win every game up here.” For me, that’s a significant distinction, which makes sense. For me, it’s a fantastic learning curve. It’s a positive mentality to need to win every game. And the guys who have been here for a long time know that to be true. Can we manage it? 100% of the time. It’s evident that a few new boys have arrived from abroad.
But pressure of one kind or another will always be present, wherever you are. Although it may not be as bad as it is here, everyone handles it differently. Now is the moment for us to work together as a team, as staff, and as a club to achieve our goals. However, I adore being here. I’m getting games, my training is going well, and everyone has been fantastic with me. I’m content with my life in Glasgow.
In order to keep Idah in the team and bring Kyogo back to the starting lineup for the Scottish Cup match at St. Mirren, Brendan Rodgers made a shape shift. Idah’s only two goals came at Easter Road in his second game for the team, both from the penalty spot, with Kyogo scoring the first goal of the day. The Irishman seems content to play with Kyogo, and today at Fir Park, we should witness more of their collaboration.
“It’s fun to play with Kyogo,” We really do work well together, in my opinion. We can both drop into midfield or play as the No. 9 position. We simply click well together on the field, so we switched a couple times last weekend without anyone telling us to.
Yogo is aware of my whereabouts, and I am the same with him. The language barrier is undoubtedly preventing us from speaking to one another. However, it just happened. We are both aware of each other’s whereabouts and the runs we plan to make. Our squad benefits from our versatility in movement.
We compliment each other well because I’m a big, strong player who can hold the ball up and he’s a small, snappy center-forward. Playing with him is enjoyable because I always know where Kyogo will be when the ball comes into play. He reminds me of Buendia, a player I had at Norwich. He strives to create something every single day.
Yesterday afternoon, Hearts provided some clarity to the incoming Celtic players. It’s a crucial lesson that all of these players need to take to heart. They will have to handle everything on their own, which means they must win every game between today’s at Fir Park and the Scottish Cup Final if they are to salvage this season.
“The guys have experienced this before; ups and downs are a natural part of the game.” Since we are all experts, we know how to handle it. We’ve discussed it, it’s not the first time it’s happened, and we remain optimistic. This kind of stuff occurs in football, and it excites me. This pressure is what you want as a player, and I like it. Enjoy it and watch what transpires.
This is how the Hearts played yesterday at Ibrox, where the Rangers increased their lead to five points. It is inconceivable that Celtic would lose today.
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